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Railway Employes' Department v. Hanson

351 U.S. 225 · Decided May 21, 1956 · 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

Railway Employes' Department v. Hanson was decided on May 21, 1956 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice William O. Douglas wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Union or closed shop” in the Unions area.

Read the opinion

Case details

Citations
351 U.S. 225 · 76 S. Ct. 714 · 100 L. Ed. 2d 1112 · 1956 U.S. LEXIS 1715
Docket number
451
Decided
May 21, 1956
Argued
May 2, 1956
Court era
Warren Court
Decision type
Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
Disposition
Reversed
Outcome for petitioner
The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
Vote
9–0 (unanimous)
Majority opinion
William O. Douglas
Opinion assigned by
Earl Warren
How the case arrived
Appeal
Issue area
Unions
Legal provision
Railway Labor Act
Type of law
Federal statute
Decision direction (SCDB)
Liberal what this means

How the Justices voted

Full case caption

Railway Employes' Department, American Federation of Labor, et al. v. Hanson et al.

SCDB identifiers: case 1955-083, docket 1955-083-01.

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Cases on the same legal provision: Railway Labor Act

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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