# List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 306

This is a list of cases reported in volume 306 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1939.

## Justices of the Supreme Court at the time of volume 306 U.S.

The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . .". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices). Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice).
When the cases in volume 306 were decided the Court comprised the following members (Justice Brandeis retired in the midst of the cases reported in volume 306):
| Justice | Office | Home State | Succeeded | Date confirmed by the Senate (Vote) | Tenure on Supreme Court |
| Charles Evans Hughes | Chief Justice | New York | William Howard Taft | February 13, 1930 (52–26) | February 24, 1930 – June 30, 1941 (Retired) |
| James Clark McReynolds | Associate Justice | Tennessee | Horace Harmon Lurton | August 29, 1914 (44–6) | October 12, 1914 – January 31, 1941 (Retired) |
| Louis Brandeis | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Joseph Rucker Lamar | June 1, 1916 (47–22) | June 5, 1916 – February 13, 1939 (Retired) |
| Pierce Butler | Associate Justice | Minnesota | William R. Day | December 21, 1922 (61–8) | January 2, 1923 – November 16, 1939 (Died) |
| Harlan F. Stone | Associate Justice | New York | Joseph McKenna | February 5, 1925 (71–6) | March 2, 1925 – July 2, 1941 (Continued as chief justice) |
| Owen Roberts | Associate Justice | Pennsylvania | Edward Terry Sanford | May 20, 1930 (Acclamation) | June 2, 1930 – July 31, 1945 (Resigned) |
| Hugo Black | Associate Justice | Alabama | Willis Van Devanter | August 17, 1937 (63–16) | August 19, 1937 – September 17, 1971 (Retired) |
| Stanley Forman Reed | Associate Justice | Kentucky | George Sutherland | January 25, 1938 (Acclamation) | January 31, 1938 – February 25, 1957 (Retired) |
| Felix Frankfurter | Associate Justice | Massachusetts | Benjamin Nathan Cardozo | January 17, 1939 (Acclamation) | January 30, 1939 – August 28, 1962 (Retired) |

## Federal court system

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i.e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.
The Judiciary Act of 1891 created the United States Courts of Appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district and circuit courts to these appellate courts. The Act created nine new courts that were originally known as the "United States Circuit Courts of Appeals." The new courts had jurisdiction over most appeals of lower court decisions. The Supreme Court could review either legal issues that a court of appeals certified or decisions of court of appeals by writ of certiorari. On January 1, 1912, the effective date of the Judicial Code of 1911, the old Circuit Courts were abolished, with their remaining trial court jurisdiction transferred to the U.S. District Courts.

## List of cases in volume 306 U.S.

| Case name | Citation | Opinion of the Court | Vote | Concurring opinion or statement | Dissenting opinion or statement | Procedural jurisdiction | Result |
| Currin v. Wallace, Secretary of Agriculture | 306 U.S. 1 (1939) | Hughes | 6-2[a] | none | McReynolds and Butler (without opinions) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (4th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Bowen v. Johnston | 306 U.S. 19 (1939) | Hughes | 8-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (9th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Washingtonian Publishing Company v. Pearson | 306 U.S. 30 (1939) | McReynolds | 5-3[a] | none | Black (opinion; with which Roberts and Reed concurred) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C. Cir.) | reversed |
| Utah Fuel Company v. National Bituminous Coal Commission | 306 U.S. 56 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0[a] | Black (short statement) | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C. Cir.) | District Court affirmed |
| Felt and Tarrant Manufacturing Company v. Gallagher | 306 U.S. 62 (1939) | McRaynolds | 7-0[a][b] | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California (S.D. Cal.) | affirmed |
| United States v. Durkee Famous Foods, Inc. | 306 U.S. 68 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0[a] | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (D.N.J.) | affirmed |
| Dixie Ohio Express Company v. State Revenue Commission of Georgia | 306 U.S. 72 (1939) | Butler | 7-0[a][b] | Black (without opinion) | none | appeal from the Georgia Supreme Court (Ga.) | affirmed |
| H.P. Welch Company v. New Hampshire | 306 U.S. 79 (1939) | Butler | 8-0[a] | none | none | appeal from the New Hampshire Supreme Court (N.H.) | affirmed |
| Mackay Radio and Telephone Company v. Radio Corporation of America | 306 U.S. 86 (1939) | Stone | 7-0[a][b] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (2d Cir.) | reversed |
| Wichita Royalty Company v. City National Bank of Wichita Falls | 306 U.S. 103 (1939) | Stone | 8-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (5th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Helvering, Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company | 306 U.S. 110 (1939) | Roberts | 8-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (4th Cir.) | affirmed |
| First Chrold Corporation v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue | 306 U.S. 117 (1939) | Roberts | 8-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (3d Cir.) | reversed |
| Tennessee Electric Power Company v. Tennessee Valley Authority | 306 U.S. 118 (1939) | Roberts | 5-2[a][b] | none | Butler (opinion; joined by McReynolds) | appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee (E.D. Tenn.) | affirmed |
| Inland Steel Company v. United States | 306 U.S. 153 (1939) | Black | 8-0[a] | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (N.D. Ill.) | affirmed |
| United States v. Midstate Horticultural Company | 306 U.S. 161 (1939) | Black | 8-0[a] | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (E.D. Pa.) | affirmed |
| Southern Pacific Company v. Gallagher | 306 U.S. 167 (1939) | Reed | 5-2[a][b] | Black (without opinion) | Butler (short statement; joined by McReynolds) | appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (N.D. Cal.) | affirmed |
| Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company v. Gallagher | 306 U.S. 182 (1939) | Reed | 5-2[a][b] | none | McReynolds and Butler (without opinions) | appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (N.D. Cal.) | affirmed |
| City of Texarkana v. Arkansas Louisiana Gas Company | 306 U.S. 188 (1939) | Reed | 6-2[a] | none | McReynolds and Butler (without opinions) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (5th Cir.) | reversed |
| Public Service Commission of Missouri v. Brashear Freight Lines, Inc. | 306 U.S. 204 (1939) | per curiam | 9-0 | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri (W.D. Mo.) | dismissed |
| Interstate Circuit, Inc. v. United States | 306 U.S. 208 (1939) | Stone | 5-3[a] | none | Roberts (opinion; joined by McReynolds and Butler) | appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas (N.D. Tex.) | affirmed |
| National Labor Relations Board v. Fansteel Metallurgical Corporation | 306 U.S. 240 (1939) | Hughes | 5-2[a] | Stone (opinion, concurring in part) | Reed (opinion, dissenting in part; with which Black concurred) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (7th Cir.) | affirmed as modified |
| Eichholz v. Public Service Commission of Missouri | 306 U.S. 268 (1939) | Hughes | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri (W.D. Mo.) | affirmed |
| United States v. Bertelsen and Petersen Engineering Company | 306 U.S. 276 (1939) | McReynolds | 7-0[b] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (1st Cir.) | affirmed |
| Titus v. Wallick | 306 U.S. 282 (1939) | Stone | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the Ohio Supreme Court (Ohio) | reversed |
| National Labor Relations Board v. Columbian Enameling & Stamping Co. | 306 U.S. 292 (1939) | Stone | 5-2[a] | none | Black (opinion; joined by Reed) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (7th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Taylor v. Standard Gas and Electric Company | 306 U.S. 307 (1939) | Roberts | 7-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (10th Cir.) | reversed |
| United States v. Towery | 306 U.S. 324 (1939) | Roberts | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (7th Cir.) | reversed |
| National Labor Relations Board v. Sands Manufacturing Company | 306 U.S. 332 (1939) | Roberts | 5-2[a] | none | Black and Reed (without opinions) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (6th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Milk Control Board v. Eisenberg Farm Products | 306 U.S. 346 (1939) | Roberts | 6-2 | none | McReynolds and Butler (joint short statement) | certiorari to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (Pa.) | reversed |
| Pierre v. Louisiana | 306 U.S. 354 (1939) | Black | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the Louisiana Supreme Court (La.) | reversed |
| United States v. Jacobs | 306 U.S. 363 (1939) | Black | 4-3[c] | none | McReynolds, Butler, and Roberts (joint opinion) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (7th Cir.) | reversed (one case); affirmed (one case) |
| Hale v. Bimco Trading, Inc. | 306 U.S. 375 (1939) | Frankfurter | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida (N.D. Fla.) | affirmed |
| Keifer and Keifer v. Reconstruction Finance Corporation | 306 U.S. 381 (1939) | Frankfurter | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (8th Cir.) | reversed |
| Texas v. Florida | 306 U.S. 398 (1939) | Stone | 6-2 | none | Frankfurter (opinion; with which Black concurred) | original jurisdiction | report of special master confirmed |
| Fairbanks v. United States | 306 U.S. 436 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (9th Cir.) | affirmed |
| Clason v. Indiana | 306 U.S. 439 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the Indiana Supreme Court (Ind.) | affirmed |
| Smith v. The Ferncliff | 306 U.S. 444 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0 | none | none | certified questions from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (4th Cir.) | certified questions answered |
| Lanzetta v. New Jersey | 306 U.S. 451 (1939) | Butler | 7-0[a] | none | none | appeal from the New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals (N.J.) | reversed |
| Chesebro v. Los Angeles County Flood Control District | 306 U.S. 459 (1939) | Butler | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the California Supreme Court (Cal.) | affirmed |
| Graves and Others, Commissioners Constituting the State Tax Commission of New York v. New York ex rel. O'Keefe | 306 U.S. 466 (1939) | Stone | 6-2 | Hughes (without opinion); Frankfurter (opinion) | Butler and McReynolds (joint opinion) | certiorari to the New York Supreme Court (N.Y. Sup. Ct.) | reversed |
| Pacific Employers Insurance Company v. Industrial Accident Commission of California | 306 U.S. 493 (1939) | Stone | 7-0[a] | none | none | certiorari to the California Supreme Court (Cal.) | affirmed |
| Bonet v. Yabucoa Sugar Company | 306 U.S. 505 (1939) | Black | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (1st Cir.) | reversed |
| State Tax Commission of Utah v. Van Cott | 306 U.S. 511 (1939) | Black | 7-0[d] | none | none | certiorari to the Utah Supreme Court (Utah) | vacated |
| Lowden v. Simonds-Shields-Lonsdale Grain Company | 306 U.S. 516 (1939) | Reed | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (8th Cir.) | reversed |
| Helvering, Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Metropolitan Edison Company | 306 U.S. 522 (1939) | Roberts | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (3d Cir.) | affirmed |
| General Gas and Electric Corporation v. Commissioner | 306 U.S. 530 (1939) | Roberts | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (2d Cir.) | reversed |
| Kohn v. Central Distributing Company | 306 U.S. 531 (1939) | Hughes | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky (E.D. Ky.) | affirmed |
| Higginbotham v. City of Baton Rouge | 306 U.S. 535 (1939) | Hughes | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the Louisiana Supreme Court (La.) | affirmed |
| Honeyman v. Jacobs | 306 U.S. 539 (1939) | Hughes | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the New York Supreme Court (N.Y. Sup. Ct.) | affirmed |
| Carrier v. Bryant | 306 U.S. 545 (1939) | McReynolds | 8-0 | none | none | certiorari to the North Carolina Supreme Court (N.C.) | affirmed |
| Honolulu Oil Corporation v. Halliburton | 306 U.S. 550 (1939) | Butler | 7-0[d] | none | none | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (9th Cir.) | reversed (one case); affirmed (one case) |
| Atlas Life Insurance Company v. W.I. Southern, Inc. | 306 U.S. 563 (1939) | Stone | 8-0 | none | none | certified questions from the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (10th Cir.) | dismissed |
| Wilentz v. Sovereign Camp, Woodmen | 306 U.S. 573 (1939) | Stone | 8-0 | none | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (D.N.J.) | dismissed |
| Clark, Director of Department of Motor Vehicles of California v. Paul Gray, Inc. | 306 U.S. 583 (1939) | Stone | 8-0 | Black (short statement) | none | appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California (S.D. Cal.) | reversed |
| National Labor Relations Board v. Fain-Blatt | 306 U.S. 601 (1939) | Stone | 6-2 | none | McReynolds and Butler (opinion; joined by Butler) | certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (3d Cir.) | reversed |
    [a] Frankfurter took no part in the case (he joined the Court on January 30, 1939, and so did not participate in cases argued before that date)
    [b] Roberts took no part in the case
    [c] Stone took no part in the case
    [d] Hughes took no part in the case