Fink v. Shepard Steamship Co.
337 U.S. 810 · Decided June 27, 1949 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Fink v. Shepard Steamship Co. was decided on June 27, 1949 by a vote of 5–4. The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Stanley F. Reed wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Governmental liability” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 337 U.S. 810 · 69 S. Ct. 1330 · 93 L. Ed. 2d 1709 · 1949 U.S. LEXIS 2945
- Docket number
- 360
- Decided
- June 27, 1949
- Argued
- February 2, 1949
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- Stanley F. Reed
- Opinion assigned by
- Fred M. Vinson
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Jones Act or Death on the High Seas Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | |
| Justice Frank Murphy | Dissent | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Wiley B. Rutledge | Dissent | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Majority |
Full case caption
Fink v. Shepard Steamship Co.
SCDB identifiers: case 1948-112, docket 1948-112-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Larson v. Domestic and Foreign Commerce Corp.
- United States v. Wittek
- Brooks v. United States
- Farrell v. United States
- United States v. Spelar
- United States v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co.
Cases on the same legal provision: Jones Act or Death on the High Seas Act
- Cosmopolitan Shipping Co. v. McAllisterAltered precedent
- Johnson v. United States
- Lauritzen v. Larsen
- Cox v. Roth
- Schulz v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Senko v. Lacrosse Dredging Corp.
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Mandel Brothers, Inc. v. Wallace
- Ford Motor Co. v. United States
- Eckenrode v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- Kordel v. United States
- United States v. Urbuteit
- Grand River Dam Authority v. Grand-Hydro
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error