Walters v. City of St. Louis
347 U.S. 231 · Decided March 15, 1954 · 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
Walters v. City of St. Louis was decided on March 15, 1954 unanimously (9–0). The Court affirmed the lower court's decision. Justice Robert H. Jackson wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “State or local government tax” in the Economic Activity area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 347 U.S. 231 · 74 S. Ct. 505 · 98 L. Ed. 2d 660 · 1954 U.S. LEXIS 2333
- Docket number
- 389
- Decided
- March 15, 1954
- Argued
- February 2, 1954
- Court era
- Warren Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party did not receive a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Robert H. Jackson
- Opinion assigned by
- Earl Warren
- How the case arrived
- Appeal
- Issue (SCDB)
- State or local government tax
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Legal provision
- Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Liberal what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice Hugo L. Black | Special concurrence | |
| Justice Stanley F. Reed | Majority | |
| Justice Felix Frankfurter | Majority | |
| Justice William O. Douglas | Special concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Robert H. Jackson | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Harold H. Burton | Majority | |
| Justice Tom C. Clark | Majority | |
| Justice Sherman Minton | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Earl Warren | Majority |
Full case caption
Walters et al. v. City of St. Louis et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1953-051, docket 1953-051-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “State or local government tax”
- Miller Brothers Co. v. MarylandLaw held unconstitutional
- Railway Express Agency, Inc. v. VirginiaLaw held unconstitutional
- Kern-Limerick, Inc. v. ScurlockLaw held unconstitutional
- Michigan-Wisconsin Pipe Line Co. v. CalvertLaw held unconstitutional
- General Electric Co. v. Washington.
- Braniff Airways, Inc. v. Nebraska State Board of Equalization and Assessment
Cases on the same legal provision: Fourteenth Amendment (due process)
- Barsky v. Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York
- Leyra v. Denno
- National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards v. Arnold
- United States ex Rel. Smith v. Baldi
- In re Murchison
- Chessman v. Teets
Same Term, same area (Economic Activity)
- Voris v. Eikel
- Toolson v. New York Yankees, Inc.
- Avondale Marine Ways, Inc. v. Henderson
- Pope & Talbot, Inc. v. Hawn
- Wilko v. Swan
- General Protective Committee for the Holders of Option Warrants of the United Corporation v. Securities and Exchange Commission
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