railroad
Definitions from Case Law · United States Supreme Court
Definitions from Case Law
From 83 U.S. 678 - Olcott v. The Supervisors · 1872Most cited · 152 citing opinions
as public highway
That railroads, though constructed by private corporations and owned by them, are public highways, has been the doctrine of nearly all the courts ever since such conveniences for passage and transportation have had any existence.
How the Supreme Court has restated “railroad”
Each Supreme Court definition of “railroad,” sized by how often later courts cited it. “Change” is measured by wording overlap with earlier definitions — a rough signal, not a semantic judgment.
How often courts cite the cases defining “railroad”
Court decisions citing the 5 opinions that defined “railroad” — 415 in all, by decade. Counts are citations to the defining cases as a whole, not verified uses of the term. The dip in the most recent years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the latest years.
All 5 definitions, chronological · 1872–2010
The term 'railroad,' as used in this act, shall include all bridges and ferries used or operated in connection with any railroad, and also all the road in use by any corporation operating a railroad, whether owned or operated under a contract, agreement, or lease.
Interstate Commerce Act definition
Section 1(3)(a) defines the term 'railroad' as including 'all the road in use by any common carrier operating a railroad, whether owned or operated under a contract, agreement, or lease, and also all switches, spurs, tracks.
Interstate Commerce Act
ferries used by or operated in connection with any railroad.') After Congress passed § 13a, the New York Central Railroad, among others, succeeded in eliminating its Hudson River passenger ferries.
'intermodal equipment used by or in connection with a railroad,' " §10102(6)(A)).