Erie Railroad v. Tompkins · ¶51

In this Court, stare decisis, in statutory construction, is a useful rule, hot an inexorable command. Burnet v. Coronado Oil & Gas Co., 285 U. S. 393, dissent, p. 406, note 1. Compare Read v. Bishop of Lincoln, [1892] A. C. 644, 655; London Street Tramways Co. v. London County Council, [1898] A. C. 375, 379. It seems preferable to overturn an established construction- of an Act of Congress, rather than, in the circumstances of this case, to interpret the Constitution. Cf. United States v. Delaware & Hudson Co., 213 U. S. 366.

U. S. Reports, bound volume
U. S. Reports, volume 304, at 64 (Library of Congress) · transcription: Caselaw Access Project
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