System Federation No. 91 v. Wright
364 U.S. 642 · Decided January 16, 1961 · Supreme Court of the United States
At a glance
System Federation No. 91 v. Wright was decided on January 16, 1961 by a vote of 5–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision and remanded the case. Justice John M. Harlan II 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
- 364 U.S. 642 · 81 S. Ct. 368 · 5 L. Ed. 2d 349 · 1961 U.S. LEXIS 2045
- Docket number
- 48
- Decided
- January 16, 1961
- Argued
- December 5, 1960
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 5–3
- Majority opinion
- John M. Harlan II
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Union or closed shop
- Issue area
- Unions
- Legal provision
- Railway Labor 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 | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Dissent | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority | |
| Justice John M. Harlan II | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Charles E. Whittaker | Dissent |
Did not participate: Potter Stewart.
Full case caption
System Federation No. 91, Railway Employes' Department, AFL-CIO, et al. v. Wright et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1960-029, docket 1960-029-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Union or closed shop”
- Local 60 v. National Labor Relations Board
- Local 357 v. National Labor Relations Board
- National Labor Relations Board v. News Syndicate Co., Inc.
- International Typographical Union v. National Labor Relations Board
- International Association of Machinists v. Street
- Local Lodge No. 1424 v. National Labor Relations Board
Cases on the same legal provision: Railway Labor Act
- Pennsylvania Railroad Co. v. Day
- Union Pacific Railroad Co. v. Price
- Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers v. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co.
- International Association of Machinists v. Central Airlines, Inc.
- Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers v. Louisville & Nashville Railroad Co.
- Conleyv. Gibson
Same Term, same area (Unions)
- National Labor Relations Board v. Radio and Television Broadcast Engineers Union
- National Labor Relations Board v. Mattison Machine Works
- Local 60 v. National Labor Relations Board
- Local 357 v. National Labor Relations Board
- National Labor Relations Board v. News Syndicate Co., Inc.
- International Typographical Union v. National Labor Relations Board
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