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444 U.S. 505

Crowell v. Mader

Supreme Court of the United States · decided February 19, 1980

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

“without prejudice to such further proceedings ... as may be appropriate.”

quoted by 1 later decision, including PRC Inc. v. Widnall

“only the issues raised on appeal have been resolved”

quoted by 1 later decision, including PRC Inc. v. Widnall

Relies on Baker v. Carr · Diffenderfer v. Central Baptist Church of Miami, Florida, Inc. · 343 F. Supp. 51 - Kopald v. Carr

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Vacated · 9–0 · Opinion by Per Curiam · Decided February 19, 1980

How this case has been cited

Cited by 121 later decisions (2 by the Supreme Court) — most recently June 2009 · most notably Burkert v. Petrol Plus of Naugatuck, Inc. (1990), 87 Ill. 2d 190 - Cook Associates, Inc. v. Lexington United Corp. (1981)

56 federal appellate · 1 district · 19 state decisions

900198019902000decided

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.

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

PER CURIAM.

¶2

In Kopald v. Carr, 343 F.Supp. 51 (MD Tenn.1972), the District Court applied this Court's earlier holding in Baker v. Carr, 369 U.S. 186, 82 S.Ct. 691, 7 L.Ed.2d 663 (1962), to invalidate two senatorial districting plans. That decision resulted in the formulation of a so-called court ordered "Kopald Plan." That plan was superseded by a 1973 legislative plan.

¶3

In this litigation the District Court invalidated the 1973 legislative plan. It enjoined the defendants from conducting any elections pursuant to that plan and retained jurisdiction to review whatever substitute the Tennessee General Assembly might enact prior to June 1, 1979, or, if necessary, to reinstate the 1972 "Kopald Plan." The court further ordered a hearing to award fees to plaintiffs' counsel.

¶4

In response to the State's appeal to this Court, appellees pointed out that the legislature had enacted a new plan effective on June 6, 1979, argued that the controversy over the validity of the 1973 legislative plan had therefore become moot, and requested that the appeal therefore be dismissed. This Court, following a practice that is appropriate when an entire case has become moot but which is inappropriate when only the issues raised on appeal have been resolved, entered an order directing that the judgment of the District Court be vacated and that the entire action be dismissed as moot. 444 U.S. 806, 100 S.Ct. 25, 62 L.Ed.2d 18.

¶5

The recent legislation did not moot the entire case, but only the issues raised on appeal. Appellees may still wish to attack the newly enacted legislation or apply for attorney's fees. We therefore vacate our prior order. In lieu thereof, we direct that the judgment of the District Court be vacated without prejudice to such further proceedings in the District Court as may be appropriate. See Diffenderfer v. Central Baptist Church, 404 U.S. 412, 92 S.Ct. 574, 30 L.Ed.2d 567 (1972).

¶6

It is so ordered.

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