Priebe & Sons, Inc. v. United States
332 U.S. 407 · Decided November 17, 1947 · 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
Priebe & Sons, Inc. v. United States was decided on November 17, 1947 by a vote of 5–4. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William O. Douglas 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
- 332 U.S. 407 · 68 S. Ct. 123 · 92 L. Ed. 2d 32 · 1947 U.S. LEXIS 2855
- Docket number
- 16
- Decided
- November 17, 1947
- Argued
- October 13, 1947
- Court era
- Vinson Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority opinion
- William O. Douglas
- Opinion assigned by
- Felix Frankfurter
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Governmental liability
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Frank Murphy | Dissent | |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | |
| Justice Wiley B. Rutledge | Majority | |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson | Dissent |
Full case caption
Priebe & Sons, Inc. v. United States
SCDB identifiers: case 1947-005, docket 1947-005-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Governmental liability”
- Federal Crop Insurance Corp. v. Merrill
- United States v. Munsey Trust Co.
- United States v. N. Y. Rayon Importing Co., Inc.
- United States v. Thayer-West Point Hotel Co.
- United States v. Howard P. Foley Co., Inc.
- Farrell v. United States
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Federal Crop Insurance Corp. v. Merrill
- International Salt Co., Inc. v. United States
- Lillie v. Thompson
- Aero Mayflower Transit Co. v. Board of Railroad Commissioners of Montana
- Callen v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- United States v. Sullivan
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