Digital Commons Network^™

Banks And Banking - Trusts - Special Deposits - Agreement Between Depositor And Bank, Robert E. Sipes

Michigan Law Review

During a period of widespread bank failures, plaintiff corporation ceased depositing its funds with the defendant bank. To maintain the public's impression that the plaintiff was a regular customer of the bank, an agreement was entered into by the bank and the plaintiff whereby the bank was appointed "agent" of the plaintiff to collect and remit promptly money due plaintiff. Branch offices of the plaintiff deposited money under this agreement to be transmitted to the plaintiff. When the bank failed with some of this money still in its hands, plaintiff sought to be allowed a preferred claim. Held, the …

Criminal Law And Procedure - Essential Definiteness Of Criminal Statutes - Automobile Regulations, Robert Meisenholder

Michigan Law Review

Defendant was convicted of reckless driving under section 48 of the Illinois Uniform Traffic Act which reads, "Any person who drives any vehicle with a wilful or a wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property is guilty of reckless driving." He appealed on the ground that the statute violated the Illinois Constitution because it was too vague, indefinite, and uncertain. Held, that the statute did not violate the constitution and was a valid exercise of the police power of the legislature. People v. Green, 368 Ill. 242, 13 N. E. (2d) 278 (1938).

Interstate Commerce - Right Of State To Deny Use Of Highways To Carrier Having Certificate From Interstate Commerce Commission, Ralph Winkler

Michigan Law Review

A common carrier engaged in interstate commerce applied to the Interstate Commerce Commission for a certificate of convenience and necessity as required by section 206 of the Federal Motor Carrier Act of 1935. The carrier relied on the proviso authorizing the commission to grant a certificate without a showing of public convenience and necessity where the applicant was a carrier in bona fide operation on June 1, 1935; the statute further privileged a carrier applying for a certificate under this proviso to continue operation pending determination of its application. The State Railroad Commission of Texas earlier in 1934 had denied …

Taxation - Income Tax - Settlement Of Will Contest As Taxable, Anthony L. Dividio

Michigan Law Review

Taxpayer commenced suit to contest the probate of his grandmother's will, by which she had made nominal bequests to her grandchildren, and had created a charitable trust with the large residue. The parties agreed upon a settlement, as a result of which taxpayer received $141,404.03, all of which the tax commissioner claimed was taxable income. Held, the amount received by taxpayer came to him because he was an heir and did not constitute taxable income. Lyeth v. Hoey, (U. S. 1938) 6 U. S. Law Week 421 (Dec. 6, 1938).

Monthly Periodical Index, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This department lists the articles and comments which appear in twenty-five leading law reviews.

Corporations - Disregarding Corporate Entity - Fraud, Collins E. Brooks

Michigan Law Review

A and B purchased from plaintiffs all of the stock of defendant corporation. Prior to the transaction, and as a basis for negotiations, plaintiffs had an accountant prepare a statement of corporate assets and liabilities, which showed that the corporation was in financial difficulties. A and B acknowledged the corporate indebtedness and took over the corporation. Later, plaintiffs brought suit against the corporation on claims for salaries and advancements allegedly due them from it, which claims had not appeared on the statement of corporate liabilities. Held, the corporate entity would be disregarded, and plaintiffs estopped from setting up their …

Criminal Law And Procedure - Physicians And Surgeons - Contraceptive Statutes And Implied Exceptions Thereto, Thomas K. Fisher

Michigan Law Review

A Massachusetts statute made the selling of any drug, medicine or instrument for the prevention of conception a criminal offense. The defendants, a doctor, a nurse, and two social workers, all connected with a charitable association, prescribed and sold contraceptives to non-pregnant, married women. Defendants' offer of proof, admitting the facts charged, but contending that the statute did not apply where the sale was made under a physician's prescription for the preservation of life or health, was found by the trial court to constitute no defense. Held, that the wording was plain and unequivocal allowing for no implied exception. …

Arrest - Stopping And Questioning As An Arrest - Reasonable Suspicion From Facts Disclosed By Questioning As Justification, Robert Meisenholder

Michigan Law Review

After arrest of the defendant on mere suspicion without probable cause, the arresting officers on searching the car in which he was driving found two guns. The defendant complained on appeal, after conviction for carrying concealed weapons in an automobile, of the denial of his motion before trial to suppress the evidence. Held, it was error to refuse to suppress the guns as evidence because, the arrest being unlawful, the subsequent search and seizure was unlawful. Had the officers stopped and questioned the defendant, and had such questioning disclosed facts to establish a reasonable suspicion that the defendant was …

Taxation - Income Tax - Surtax On Income Of Corporation Where Profits Are Accumulated To Avoid Surtax On Income Of Its Shareholders - Construction, Brackley Shaw

Michigan Law Review

Section 104 of the Revenue Act of 1928 imposed a surtax on the net income of any corporation "formed or availed of for the purpose of preventing the imposition of the surtax on its shareholders through the medium of permitting its gains and profits to accumulate instead of being divided and distributed," and provided that "the fact that the gains or profits are permitted to accumulate beyond the reasonable needs of the business shall be prima facie evidence of a purpose to escape the surtax." Defendant corporation was formed in 1911 with $200,000 capital stock all owned by Kohl. In …

The Public Interest Concept In Law And In Economics, Robert W. Harbeson

Michigan Law Review

It is an interesting and perhaps important coincidence that only a year previous to the famous decision in Nebbia v. New York there appeared two volumes which together constitute an equally notable landmark in the development of economic doctrine, Professor Edward Chamberlin's Theory of Monopolistic Competition and Mrs. Joan Robinson's Economics of Imperfect Competition. While there is no evidence that the latter works influenced the outcome of the Nebbia case, the writer is of the opinion that these studies not only afford a rationale of that decision but also make desirable a re-examination of the concept of "businesses affected …

The Doctrine Of Administrative Trespass In French Law: An Analogue Of Due Process, Armin Uhler

Michigan Law Review

The French droit administratif, since Dicey's critical and unsympathetic comments in his lectures and works on the English constitution, has continued to attract a great deal of interest in the English-speaking world. In this country the more recent references to the system known by that name are prompted by something more than academic curiosity. Unprecedented expansion of administrative activity, particularly on the part of the federal government, has focused attention on many problems which have become acute because of that fact. Unquestionably, one of the most vexing among them is the question of review of administrative action upon the …

Securities Legislation - Accounting Practice And The Securities Act Of 1933, Paul R. Trigg Jr.

Michigan Law Review

Item 25 of the registration regulations under the Securities Act of 1933 requires the registrant to "submit balance sheets . . . as of a date within ninety days of the filing of the registration statement." The approximate form which such balance sheets are to take is indicated in the regulations, as well as the manner of certification required. So far as the form of the balance sheet proper is concerned, it is doubtful whether item 54 presents any new or startling innovations, but when the balance sheet and the supplementary schedules required to be appended thereto are considered, it …

Limitation Of Actions - Contempt Proceedings, Menefee D. Blackwell

Michigan Law Review

The application of statutes of limitation to proceedings for criminal or civil contempt involves some obscurity and confusion in the modern cases. Legislation has rarely provided expressly for the limitation of contempt proceedings, and their hybrid character has made it difficult to rely with confidence on analogies. The modern tendency of courts has been to differentiate between criminal and civil contempts for many purposes. While the tests for distinguishing civil and criminal proceedings are not yet clear, it seems that the application of limitation acts depends very largely on this distinction.

Insurance - Supervision By The State - What Constitutes The Insurance Business, Thomas E. Wilson

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a corporation, advertised that any person who bought goods from certain selected stores would be entitled to receive coupons, and when his coupons amounted to a certain sum he would be entitled to certain death and security benefits up to specified amounts. Plaintiff brought suit against the Insurance Commissioner of Pennsylvania to enjoin him from interfering with the plaintiff's business. Held, that the plaintiff was carrying on an insurance business and was subject to supervision by the Insurance Commissioner. Hunt v. Public Mutual Benefit Foundation, (C. C. A. 3d, 1938) 94 F. (2d) 749, certiorari denied (U. …

Municipal Corporations - Official Misconduct As Ground For Removal Of Officer, Leonard D. Verdier Jr.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a member of the council of the city of Highland Park, Michigan, was removed by the council, as provided in the charter because of membership in the Black Legion. The Black Legion was a secret society founded on principles of racial, religious, and political discrimination. Its members took an oath to further these purposes by any means ordered by the officers of the organization, including violence and terrorism. Members were forbidden to expose the organization under penalty of death, and membership was supposedly permanent. The council found that membership in such a society rendered Wilson incompetent to perform the …

Schools - Private Parochial Schools - Transportation Of Pupils - Use Of Public Funds, Fred C. Newman

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff taxpayers instituted proceedings to restrain defendant board of education from complying with a statute which required defendant board of education to expend public funds for the purpose of transporting pupils to and from a parochial school. Held, that the statute was invalid as violative of the provision of the state constitution which prohibited the use of any public money "directly or indirectly" in aid of any sectarian school, and plaintiffs were entitled to judgment upon the pleadings; three judges dissented. Judd v. Board of Education of Union Free School Dist. No. 2, 278 N. Y. 200, 15 …

Taxation - Federal Gift Tax - Taxability Of Interest Passing At Creation Of Tenancy By Entirety, Ben H. Dewey

Michigan Law Review

On September 20, 1933, petitioner transferred by deed realty owned by him in fee to himself and his wife as tenants by the entirety. The commissioner of internal revenue determined that the transfer constituted a taxable gift under the Gift Tax Act of 1932. Petitioner took an appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals. Held, with one dissent, that such creation of a tenancy by the entireties did not constitute a taxable transfer under the Gift Tax Act. Hart v. Commissioner, 36 B. T. A. No. 176 (Dec. 28, 1937).

Monthly Periodical Index, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This department lists the articles and comments which appear in twenty-five leading law reviews.

Book Notes, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This department undertakes to list and, when possible, describe briefly current boob on law and matters closely related thereto.

Book Notes, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This department undertakes to list and, when possible, describe briefly current books on law and matters closely related thereto.

Taxation - Federal Estate Tax - Subscriptions To Charitable And Educational Institutions As Deductions From Gross Estate, Charles E. Nadeau

Michigan Law Review

Decedent had promised to contribute funds to numerous educational, religious, and charitable institutions. Some of these pledges were conditioned on pledges of third parties to perform certain duties or to furnish subscriptions to equal amounts. In several instances the institutions, on fullfillment of the conditions, acted in reliance on these promises in a manner that made them enforceable against the estate under the state law. The executor had paid some of these claims. In affirming the Board of Tax Appeals the court held that pledges, though later satisfied by the executor, cannot be deducted from the gross estate as "transfers" …

"Extra Time For Overtime" Now Law, Frank E. Cooper

Michigan Law Review

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 presents a great many legal and practical problems of importance commensurate with the comprehensiveness of the act itself, which is probably the most far-reaching of the New Deal statutes since the N. R. A. The act is conceived on the theory that any physical handling of goods destined to be subsequently shipped to another state is an act so closely and substantially related to the flow of interstate commerce as to be subject to Congressional regulation, and thus depends for its validity upon an extension of the theories approved in the Wagner Act …

Criminal Law And Procedure - Appeal By State - Constitutionality Of Statutes-Due Process Of Law, Edward D. Ransom

Michigan Law Review

Developing as a result of a period when an accused person was placed at a tremendous disadvantage at the hands of tyrannical judges exercising an unconscionable abuse of power, the concept that no person shall "be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb" was put into the Fifth Amendment of the Federal Constitution and into many of the state constitutions. As a part of this double jeopardy concept, the American courts, from the first, established the rule that the state should not be allowed to appeal in a criminal prosecution. The accused, …

Criminal Law And Procedure - Evidence - Dismissal Of Prosecution For Reference To Other Crimes Of Defendant, John Barker Waite

Michigan Law Review

Any discussion of Judge Pecora's declaration of a mistrial in People v. Hines must adhere firmly to the fundamental proposition that every accused person, no matter how evident his guilt nor how great the hostility toward him, is entitled to a fair trial, conducted in accord with established rules, and to the verdict of a jury uninfluenced by improper factors. But did the judge's ruling perhaps exceed what was reasonably necessary to assure the defendant of these essentials?

Contracts - Consideration - Dealers' Contracts, Richard S. Brawerman

Michigan Law Review

Defendant manufacturer, reserving the right to sell to enumerated persons, granted plaintiff dealer a franchise to sell certain of defendant's products in a defined territory. Plaintiff in turn promised to establish a place of business and develop the territory to the satisfaction of defendant. All orders received by defendant were to be subject to acceptance by defendant; defendant agreed to fill accepted orders as promptly as practicable; and plaintiff expressly released defendant from liability for loss or damage arising from failure of defendant to fill the plaintiff's orders. A clause, originally part of the agreement, allowing either party to cancel …

Constitutional Law - Validity Of State Occupation Tax On Contractors With The Federal Government, James H. Kilbourne

Michigan Law Review

The increasing burden of both federal and state taxation during the past decade has multiplied the attempts by some of those affected to establish, in the courts, immunity from certain taxes. The limitations of the power of the governments to tax have, then, special significance for one who seeks, in that fashion, to challenge the imposition of a tax on himself. Two cases recently decided by the Supreme Court involved one of those limitations-that which denies to the states the power to enforce a tax which impedes the exercise of the powers of the federal government.

Manufacturer's Liability For Injuries Caused By His Products: Defective Automobiles, Lester W. Feezer

Michigan Law Review

When a manufactured article fails to meet the reasonable expectations of the purchaser-user and in consequence he suffers personal injury or property damage, is the manufacturer responsible? When the user purchases from the manufacturer, so that there is privity of contract and the formulated concepts of sales and warranty law are available, we have a relatively simple situation which it is not the primary purpose of this paper to discuss. The common-law concepts for dealing with such problems seem to have been formulated in times when this privity element was usually present, and it is therefore not a matter of …

Recent Developments In Actions Against Nonresident Motorists, Maurice S. Culp

Michigan Law Review

When this subject was discussed several years ago, statutes in thirty-five states authorized service of process upon some state official in actions filed against nonresident motorists. The passage of such legislation has continued. Today, out of the forty-eight states and the District of Columbia, apparently only Missouri, Nevada and Utah do not make some provision for such service.

It is proposed herein to discuss the new statutes which have been enacted since the previous article was written, to consider significant changes and developments in older legislation, and to survey the recent judicial decisions interpreting these process statutes.

Constitutional Law - Taxation - The Gerhardt Decision And Intergovernmental Tax Immunity, Allan A. Rubin

Michigan Law Review

Recent decisions handed down by the United States Supreme Court this last term have to a large extent fulfilled the anticipations aroused by James v. Dravo Contracting Co. of an enlargement of the governmental powers to impose non-discriminatory taxes. Allen v. Regents of the University System of Georgia held valid the application of a general federal admissions tax to admissions to athletic contests conducted under the auspices of the regents of the University of Georgia, a state university. Helvering v. Mountain Producers Corp. decided that a lessee under an oil and gas lease of state school lands was not …

Constitutional Law - Interstate Compacts -- Validity - Review By United States Supreme Court, Gerald M. Stevens

Michigan Law Review

The states of Colorado and New Mexico agreed by compact on a division of the water of the La Plata river, which rises in the first state and flows into the second. The interstate compact, as administered, required that during periods of low water the whole flow of the river was to be used alternately by the states. For ten days Colorado users were to have all the water, then for a like time to allow the water to flow undiminished to New Mexico. In Colorado a ditch company engaged in distributing water for irrigation had acquired by appropriation a …