Shelton v. Platt
Supreme Court of the United States
APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE. Thomas O. Platt filed his bill (subsequently amended) against J. W. Allen, comptroller of the State of Tennessee, and A. Shelton, sheriff, and S. D. Cate, deputy sheriff, of Hamilton County, Tennessee, in the Circuit Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Tennessee, as president of the United States Express Company, a joint stock company of the State of New York, and as…
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APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE. Thomas O. Platt filed his bill (subsequently amended) against J. W. Allen, comptroller of the State of Tennessee, and A. Shelton, sheriff, and S. D. Cate, deputy sheriff, of Hamilton County, Tennessee, in the Circuit Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Tennessee, as president of the United States Express Company, a joint stock company of the State of New York, and as one of the members thereof, on- behalf of himself and his associates, who were too numerous to be joined as parties, to…
1Opinion of the CourtChief Justice Fuller
The question whether, even if the act under which the tax in question was imposed were unconstitutional and the tax void, complainant on behalf of the express company was •entitled to the relief accorded, meets us on the threshold.
It was ruled in Dows v. Chicago, 11 Wall. 108, 112, that a suit in equity will not lie to restrain the collection of a tax on the sole ground that the tax is illegal, but that there must exist, in addition, special circumstances bringing the case under some recognized head of equity jurisdiction, such as that the enforcement of the tax would lead to a multiplicity…
2Cases cited10 opinions
- Osborn v. Bank of United StatesSupreme Court of the United States · 1824
- Dows v. City of ChicagoSupreme Court of the United States · 1871
- Cummings v. National BankSupreme Court of the United States · 1880
- Dodge v. WoolseySupreme Court of the United States · 1856
- Snyder v. MarksSupreme Court of the United States · 1883
5 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by116 opinions
- Bob Jones University v. SimonSupreme Court of the United States · 1974
- Matthews v. RodgersSupreme Court of the United States · 1932
- In Re TylerSupreme Court of the United States · 1893
- Raymondv v. Chicago Union Traction Co.Supreme Court of the United States · 1907
- Petroleum Exploration, Inc. v. Public Service CommissionSupreme Court of the United States · 1938
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