Darby v. United States 1941
| Author | Daniel Brannen, Richard Hanes, Elizabeth Shaw |
| Pages | 1031-1034 |
Page 1031
Appellant: United States
Appellee: Fred W. Darby
Appellant's Claim: That under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, Congress may regulate workers' wages and hours.
Chief Lawyer for Appellant: Robert H. Jackson, U.S. Attorney General
Chief Lawyer for Appellee: Archibald B. Lovett
Justices for the Court: Hugo Lafayette Black, William O. Douglas, Felix Frankfurter, Charles Evans Hughes, Frank Murphy, Stanley Forman Reed, Owen Josephus Roberts, Harlan Fiske Stone (writing for the Court)
Justices Dissenting: None (James Clark McReynolds did not participate)
Date of Decision: 3 February 1941
Decision: The Supreme Court upheld the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Significance: Darby allowed Congress to use its power under the Commerce Clause, which involves business, to enact laws for public welfare.
In 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act. It was the last important piece of the New Deal. The New Deal was President Franklin D. Roosevelt's plan to improve social and economic conditions in the United States during the Great Depression.
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The Fair Labor Standards Act set maximum working hours and minimum wages for workers making products that would travel in interstate commerce. Interstate commerce means commerce or business that crosses state lines. The Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.
Associate Justice Harlan Fiske Stone.
Fred W. Darby was an industrialist in Georgia. Darby's company made lumber from timber. Much of the lumber was shipped in interstate commerce for sale in other states.
Soon after Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act, the federal government charged Darby with violating the Act. The government said Darby's workers received less than the minimum twenty-five cents per hour. It also said Darby's workers worked more than the maximum forty-four hours per week without getting increased pay for overtime.
Darby fought the lawsuit by asking the federal district court to dismiss the case. Darby said that under the Commerce Clause, Congress only had power to regulate businesses that actually crossed state lines. Darby's company manufactured lumber entirely within the state of Georgia.
Darby said it was up to Georgia to decide whether to regulate his business. After all, the Tenth...
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