Stratton v. St. Louis Southwestern Railway Co.’s Empirical Analysis
282 U.S. 10 · 1930
Citation profile
191 federal appellate · 33 district · 8 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 454 later decisions (96 by the Supreme Court) — most recently November 2016 · most notably Steffel v. Thompson (1974), Bender v. Williamsport Area School District (1986)
191 federal appellate · 33 district · 8 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Appellate journey
reviewedSt. Louis Southwestern Ry. Co. v. Emmerson (from Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals)
Relationships
Relies on Virginian Ry Co v. United States · Maryland v. Soper · Ex parte Collins · Exporters of Manufacturers' Products, Inc. v. Butterworth-Judson Co.
Most-quoted passages
The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 454 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““If an application for an interlocutory injunction is made and pressed to restrain the enforcement of a state statute, or of an administrative order made pursuant to a state statute, upon the ground -that such enforcement would be in violation of the Federal Constitution, a single judge has no jurisdiction to entertain a motion to dismiss the bill on the merits. He is as much without power to .dismiss the bill on the merits as he would be to grant either an interlocutory or a permanent injunction. His authority is strictly limited to granting, upon proper cause being shown, a temporary restraining order to be effective only pending the determination of the application for an interlocutory injunction. Upon making such an order, it is his duty immediately to call two other judges, as the statute directs, to assist him in hearing and determining that application. * * * “Fourth. If a single judge, thus acting without jurisdiction, undertakes to enter an order granting an interlocutory injunction or a final decree, either dismissing the bill on the merits or granting a permanent-injunction, no appeal lies from such an order or decree tp this Court, as the statute plainly contemplates such a direct appeal only in the case of an order or decree entered by a court composed of three judges in accordance with the statutory requirement. Nor does an appeal lie to the Circuit Court of Appeals from an order or decree thus entered by a District Judge without authority, for to sustain a revi”
4 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority“* * * By the statute * * * the Congress sought to make interference by interlocutory injunction with the enforcement of state legislation a matter for the adequate hearing and full deliberation which the presence of a court composed of three judges, as provided by the statute, was likely to secure. * * *”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.