United States v. Rumely’s Empirical Analysis
1953
Citation profile
414 federal appellate · 102 district · 64 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 948 later decisions (185 by the Supreme Court) — most recently June 2024 · most notably Burger King Corporation v. Rudzewicz (1985), Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
414 federal appellate · 102 district · 64 state decisions — followed in 17 states
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
reviewedRumely v. United States (from District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals)
Relationships
Relies on Crowell v. Benson · Near v. State of Minnesota Olson · Lovell v. City of Griffin · Murdock v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania · Grosjean v. American Press 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 948 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“[I]f a serious doubt of constitutionality is raised, it is a cardinal principle that this Court will first ascertain whether a construction of the statute is fairly possible by which the question may be avoided.”
4 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority“representations made directly to the Congress, its members, or its committees.”
3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority““A requirement that a publisher disclose the identity of those who buy his books, pamphlets, or papers is indeed the beginning of surveillance of the press.... Once the government can demand of a publisher the names of the purchasers of his publications, the free press as we know it disappears. Then the spectre of a government agent will look over the shoulder of everyone who reads. The purchase of a book or pamphlet today may result in a subpoena tomorrow. Fear of criticism goes with every person into the bookstall. The subtle, imponderable pressures of the orthodox lay hold. Some will fear to read what is unpopular---The press and its readers will pay a heavy price in harassment____If [a book-buyer] can be required to disclose what she read yesterday and what she will read tomorrow, fear will take the place of freedom in the libraries, bookstores, and homes of the land.... Congress could not do this by law. The power of investigation is also limited.””
2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
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.