Affiliations

• Brambir v. Cunard White Star Limited

  Cites Darcy v. . Presbyterian Hospital — Darcy v. Presbyterian Hospital, 137 App. Div. 924, reversed.

• Munzer v. Swedish American Line

  Cites Scallon v. Manhattan Railway Co. — Scallon v. Manhattan Ry. Co., 112 App. Div. 262, reversed.

• Elbert v. Johnson

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1946-10-15 · cited 2×

  This case involved plaintiffs seeking a refund of $18,600 in income taxes for 1938, claiming a credit for a gift tax paid in 1936 that was later found not due, under the doctrine of recoupment. The court dismissed the complaint, holding that it lacked jurisdiction because the plaintiffs had previously filed a petition for redetermination with the Tax Court regarding the same tax year. The reasoning centered on Section 322(c) of the Revenue Acts, which bars district court suits for refund once a Tax Court petition is filed, and the plaintiffs' election to litigate there was binding even though the recoupment issue was not fully adjudicated there.

  taxesprocedure

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• Paris v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co.

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1946-06-12 · cited 5×

  This case involved a declaratory judgment action by insurance agents employed by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company seeking access to an escrow fund representing retroactive wage increases ordered by the National War Labor Board during World War II collective bargaining disputes. Metropolitan counterclaimed, arguing that sections 213(7) and 213-a(5) of the New York Insurance Law prohibited such retroactive payments. The court determined that even assuming the state law provisions barred the payments, the federal War Labor Disputes Act and the Board's directive order superseded and rendered inoperative the inconsistent state statutes. Judgment was therefore entered for the plaintiffs, entitling them to the escrow fund.

  labor & employmentfederal power

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• Bank Line Limited v. United States

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1946-05-28 · cited 3×

  This case involved a motion by the United States to vacate or modify a prior court order requiring production for inspection of a U.S. Navy Board of Investigation record concerning vessel collisions in a convoy, excluding only portions dealing solely with disciplinary actions against naval personnel. The court denied the motion and upheld the original order directing production under Admiralty Rule 32. The core reasoning was that the privilege claim was rejected under Hickman v. Taylor with no national security concerns present, the cases cited by the Navy were factually distinguishable or arose during wartime, and concerns about hampering Navy administration were unfounded because each discovery request would be evaluated on its own facts and merits.

  procedure

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• O'Brien v. RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1946-05-02 · cited 15×

  The case involved a plaintiff who submitted an unsolicited idea for a motion picture about the Palace Theatre and vaudeville to the defendant film company, which then allegedly incorporated the idea into its film "Show Business." The plaintiff asserted a common-law property right in the idea but made no claim of copyright infringement or any prior contract with the defendant. The court granted the defendant's motion for judgment on the pleadings and dismissed the complaint. It reasoned that the idea was too abstract and general to constitute protectable literary property in tangible form, and voluntary disclosure without a contract provided no basis for protection even as a business suggestion.

  propertybusiness & regulatory

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• Slifka v. Johnson

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1945-05-22 · cited 2×

  This case involved executors of George Schustek's estate seeking to recover over $18,000 in federal estate taxes paid to the IRS after the proceeds of 12 life insurance policies were included in the decedent's gross estate. The central issue was whether Schustek's 1936 transfers of ownership and control over the policies to his wife qualified as transfers in contemplation of death under Section 302(c) of the Revenue Act of 1926. The court held that the transfers were made in contemplation of death and that the proceeds were properly taxable, dismissing the complaint. Its reasoning centered on evidence that the dominant motive for the transfers, as stated in letters to the insurers, was to avoid estate taxes, which outweighed other factors such as the decedent's good health at the time; the taxpayer bore the burden of proving otherwise but did not meet it.

  taxes

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• Sawyer v. Crowell Pub. Co.

  District Court, S.D. New York · 1942-04-30 · cited 14×

  This case was a copyright infringement suit in which a former Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior claimed that a publisher reproduced portions of his 1930 copyrighted map of Alaska in a 1937 magazine article. The court ruled for the defendant, finding that the plaintiff held no enforceable copyright. The core reasoning was that the map was prepared in connection with the plaintiff's government duties, using government employees, materials, and facilities, so any property rights belonged to the United States and any copyright obtained by the plaintiff was held in trust for the government; the court also noted that the specific elements copied from a later republication were either unprotected or in the public domain.

  propertyfederal power

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