This is a list of cases reported in volume 278 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1928 and 1929.

Justices of the Supreme Court at the time of volume 278 U.S.

The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . .". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices). Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice).

When the cases in volume 278 were decided the Court comprised the following nine members:

Portrait Justice Office Home State Succeeded Date confirmed by the Senate(Vote) Tenure on Supreme Court William Howard Taft Chief Justice Connecticut Edward Douglass White (Acclamation) –February 3, 1930(Retired) Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Associate Justice Massachusetts Horace Gray (Acclamation) –January 12, 1932(Retired) Willis Van Devanter Associate Justice Wyoming Edward Douglass White (as Associate Justice) (Acclamation) –June 2, 1937(Retired) James Clark McReynolds Associate Justice Tennessee Horace Harmon Lurton (44–6) –January 31, 1941(Retired) Louis Brandeis Associate Justice Massachusetts Joseph Rucker Lamar (47–22) –February 13, 1939(Retired) George Sutherland Associate Justice Utah John Hessin Clarke (Acclamation) –January 17, 1938(Retired) Pierce Butler Associate Justice Minnesota William R. Day (61–8) –November 16, 1939(Died) Edward Terry Sanford Associate Justice Tennessee Mahlon Pitney (Acclamation) –March 8, 1930(Died) Harlan F. Stone Associate Justice New York Joseph McKenna (71–6) –July 2, 1941(Continued as chief justice)

Notable Case in 278 U.S. Wisconsin v. Illinois Wisconsin v. Illinois, 278 U.S. 367 (1929), also referred to as the "Chicago Sanitary District Case", is an opinion of the Supreme Court, which held that the equitable power of the United States can be used to impose positive action on one state in a situation in which non-action would result in damage to the interests of other states. The city of Chicago increasingly was diverting Great Lakes waters to carry off sewage through a long-established drainage canal, the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. Illinois claimed that these increasing amounts of diverted water were necessary due to Chicago's growth. Wisconsin, however, claimed that the diversion was lowering lake levels, thereby impairing its transportation facilities and abilities. The Court decided for Wisconsin. In deciding a case between States, the authority of the Court to enjoin a continued wrong being inflicted necessarily includes the authority to require measures to be taken to end the conditions which stand in the way of the execution of the decree.

Citation style

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i.e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.

The Judiciary Act of 1891 created the United States Courts of Appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district and circuit courts to these appellate courts. The Act created nine new courts that were originally known as the "United States Circuit Courts of Appeals." The new courts had jurisdiction over most appeals of lower court decisions. The Supreme Court could review either legal issues that a court of appeals certified or decisions of court of appeals by writ of certiorari. On January 1, 1912, the effective date of the Judicial Code of 1911, the old Circuit Courts were abolished, with their remaining trial court jurisdiction transferred to the U.S. District Courts.

Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions. "# Cir." = United States Court of Appeals e.g., "3d Cir." = United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit "D." = United States District Court for the District of . . . e.g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts "E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western e.g.,"M.D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama "Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time. e.g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania e.g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine

List of cases in volume 278 U.S.

Case Name Page and year Opinion of the Court Concurring opinion(s) Dissenting opinion(s) Lower Court Disposition Foster-Fountain Packing Company v. Haydel 1 (1928) Butler none McReynolds E.D. La. reversed Johnson v. Haydel 16 (1928) Butler none none E.D. La. reversed Maney v. United States 17 (1928) Holmes none none 7th Cir. affirmed Lehigh Valley Railroad Company v. Board of Public Utility Commissioners of New Jersey 24 (1928) Taft none McReynolds D.N.J. affirmed Boston Sand and Gravel Company v. United States 41 (1928) Holmes none Sutherland 1st Cir. affirmed United States v. Cambridge Loan and Building Company 55 (1928) Holmes none none Ct. Cl. affirmed United States v. Lenson 60 (1928) Holmes none none Ct. Cl. reversed New York ex rel. Bryant v. Zimmerman 63 (1928) VanDevanter none McReynolds N.Y. Sup. Ct. affirmed Charles Warner Company v. Independent Pier Company 85 (1928) McReynolds none none 3d Cir. reversed Herkness v. Irion 92 (1928) Brandeis none none E.D. La. reversed Hunt v. United States 96 (1928) Sutherland none none D. Ariz. affirmed Ex parte Public National Bank of New York 101 (1928) Sutherland none none S.D.N.Y. mandamus denied Louis K. Liggett Company v. Baldridge 105 (1928) Sutherland none Holmes E.D. Pa. reversed Washington ex rel. Seattle Title Trust Company v. Roberge 116 (1928) Butler none none Wash. reversed Jordan v. Tashiro 123 (1928) Stone none none Cal. affirmed Pacific Steamship Company v. Peterson 130 (1928) Sanford none none Wash. affirmed Unadilla Valley Railway Company v. Caldine 139 (1928) Holmes none none N.Y. reversed Northern Coal and Dock Company v. Strand 142 (1928) McReynolds Stone none Wis. reversed Security Mortgage Company v. Powers 149 (1928) Brandeis none none 5th Cir. reversed Weil v. Neary 160 (1929) Taft none none 2d Cir. reversed Lash's Products Company v. United States 175 (1929) Holmes none none Ct. Cl. affirmed Commercial Casualty Insurance Company v. Consolidated Stone Company 177 (1929) VanDevanter none none 6th Cir. certification Russell v. United States 181 (1929) McReynolds none none 5th Cir. reversed Slaker v. O'Connor 188 (1929) McReynolds none none 8th Cir. dismissed Roe v. Kansas ex rel. Smith 191 (1929) McReynolds none none Kan. dismissed State Highway Commission of Wyoming v. Utah Construction Company 194 (1929) McReynolds none none 8th Cir. reversed West v. Standard Oil Company 200 (1929) Brandeis none none D.C. Cir. reversed Cogen v. United States 221 (1929) Brandeis none none 2d Cir. affirmed Lawrence v. St. Louis–San Francisco Railway Company 228 (1929) Brandeis none none N.D. Okla. affirmed Williams v. Standard Oil Company of Louisiana 235 (1929) Sutherland none none M.D. Tenn. affirmed George Van Camp and Sons Company v. American Can Company 245 (1929) Sutherland none none 7th Cir. certification United States v. Williams 255 (1929) Sutherland none none 3d Cir. reversed Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad Company v. Mars 258 (1929) Butler none none Tex. affirmed International Shoe Company v. Pinkus 261 (1929) Butler none none Ark. reversed United States v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Company 269 (1929) Butler none none W.D. Ark. affirmed Botany Worsted Mills v. United States 282 (1929) Sanford none none Ct. Cl. affirmed United States v. Carver 294 (1929) Sanford none none Ct. Cl. reversed United Fuel Gas Company v. Railroad Commission of Kentucky 300 (1929) Stone none none E.D. Ky. affirmed United Fuel Gas Company v. Public Service Commission of West Virginia 322 (1929) Stone none none S.D.W. Va. affirmed Chase National Bank v. United States 327 (1929) Stone none none Ct. Cl. certification Reinecke v. Northern Trust Company 339 (1929) Stone none none 7th Cir. multiple Gleason v. Seaboard Air Line Railroad Company 349 (1929) Stone none none 5th Cir. reversed Oriel v. Russell 358 (1929) Taft none none 2d Cir. affirmed Wisconsin v. Illinois 367 (1929) Taft none none original returned to master Exchange Trust Company v. Drainage District No. 7 421 (1929) Taft none none Ark. affirmed United States v. Commonwealth and Dominion Line, Ltd. 427 (1929) Holmes none none 2d Cir. reversed Larson v. South Dakota 429 (1929) Taft none none S.D. affirmed Arlington Hotel Company v. Fant 439 (1929) Taft none none Ark. affirmed Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway Company v. White 456 (1929) Holmes none none Tenn. affirmed Cudahy Packing Company v. Hinkle 460 (1929) McReynolds none Brandeis W.D. Wash. reversed Taft v. Bowers 470 (1929) McReynolds none none 2d Cir. affirmed Salomon v. State Tax Commission of New York 484 (1929) Brandeis none none N.Y. County Sur. Ct. affirmed Michigan Central Railroad Company v. Mix 492 (1929) Brandeis none none Mo. reversed Western and Atlantic Railroad Company v. Hughes 496 (1929) Brandeis none none Ga. Ct. App. affirmed Hart Refineries v. Harmon 499 (1929) Sutherland none none Mont. affirmed Great Northern Railroad Company v. Minnesota 503 (1929) Sutherland none none Minn. affirmed Rice and Adams Corporation v. Lathrop 509 (1929) Sutherland none none 2d Cir. affirmed Frost v. Corporate Commission of Oklahoma 515 (1929) Sutherland none Brandeis; Stone W.D. Okla. reversed

Notes and references

External links Case reports in volume 278 from Library of Congress Case reports in volume 278 from Court Listener Case reports in volume 278 from the Caselaw Access Project of Harvard Law School Case reports in volume 278 from Google Scholar Case reports in volume 278 from Justia Case reports in volume 278 from Open Jurist Website of the United States Supreme Court United States Courts website about the Supreme Court National Archives, Records of the Supreme Court of the United States American Bar Association, How Does the Supreme Court Work? The Supreme Court Historical Society