Opinion · Supreme Court of the United States

Memphis Street Railway Co. v. Moore

Memphis St. Ry. Co. v. Moore, 243 U.S. 299 (1917)

Type
Opinion
Court
Supreme Court of the United States
Jurisdiction
Federal
Date
1917-03-06
Topic
general

How later courts describe this case

  • a nonresident administrator who qualified in Tennessee was not a Tennessee citizen for diversity purposes, even though a Tennessee statute said such a person was a Tennessee citizen, because the jurisdiction of a federal court cannot be impaired or annulled by a state statute

Citator

UpLaw has not yet analyzed Memphis Street Railway Co. v. Moore. The absence of a flag is not a finding that it is good law.

Cited by
30 opinions
MEMPHIS STREET RY. CO.v. MOORE,243 U.S. 299(1917)
37 S.Ct. 273
MEMPHIS STREET RAILWAY COMPANYv. MOORE, ADMINISTRATOR OF DOUGLAS.
CERTIORARI TO THE CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT.
No. 623.
Argued January 29, 1917.
Decided March 6, 1917.
Where no conflict with the Federal Constitution or laws is involved, a construction of a state statute by the highest court of the State is accepted by this court as conclusive. The act of Tennessee providing that when nonresidents qualify in the State as the personal representatives of decedents dying and leaving assets therein such nonresidents shall be treated as citizens of thePage 300State for the purpose of suing and being sued, was not intended to exclude them from resort to the federal courts. The purpose of the act as construed by the State Supreme Court was to permit them to suein forma pauperis. 232 F. 708, affirmed.
THE case is stated in the opinion.
Mr. Roane Waring, with whomMr. Luke E. Wrightwas on the brief, for petitioner.Mr. Ike W. Crabtree, with whomMr. Milton J. Andersonwas on the briefs, for respondent.
MR. JUSTICE CLARKE delivered the opinion of the court.
The respondent, S.C. Moore, a citizen of Arkansas, in his representative capacity as administrator of the estate of Ivy B. Douglas, deceased, under appointment by the Probate Court of Shelby County, Tennessee, sued the petitioner, the Memphis Street Railway Company, a corporation organized under the laws of Tennessee, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, for wrongfully causing the death of his decedent. He recovered judgment, which was affirmed by the Circuit Court of Appeals and the case is here on certiorari for review of the holding of that court that the plaintiff had legal capacity to maintain the suit in a federal court.

On the face of the declaration there was the requisite diversity of citizenship to give the federal court jurisdiction, but the petitioner claims that the respondent, Moore, although a citizen of Arkansas, must be treated as a citizen of Tennessee under the statute of that State, entitled "An Act to declare that for the purpose of suing and being sued, a nonresident of Tennessee, who qualifies as executor or administrator in Tennessee shall be considered a citizen of Tennessee, and to provide for the service ofPage 301process upon him" (c. 501, p. 1344, Acts of 1903), which provides:

"That whenever a nonresident of the State of Tennessee qualifies in this State as the executor or administrator of a person dying in or leaving assets or property in this State, for the purpose of suing and being sued, he shall be treated as a citizen of this State."

The remainder of the act prescribes the method of service of summons upon such a nonresident executor or administrator.

Upon a full review of the legislation of the State inSouthern Railway Co. v.Maxwell,113 Tenn. 464, the Supreme Court of Tennessee decided that the sole purpose of this act is to extend to such nonresident executors and administrators as are described in it the privilege of suing in the state courtsin forma pauperis, and that the effect of it, when read with the other statutes of the State on the subject, is to confine this privilege to the people of the State or to suits devoted to their interest, "since the right is not extended to non-resident administrators generally, but only to those who have qualified in this State as the personal representative of persons dying or leaving assets or property in this State." No conflict with the Federal Constitution or laws being involved, this construction of the state statute will be accepted by this court as conclusive.Elmendorfv.Taylor, 10 Wheat. 152, 159;Old Colony TrustCo. v.Omaha,230 U.S. 100,116.

But irrespective of this rule we quite agree with this authoritative declaration that the only purpose of the act is to determine privileges in the state courts of nonresidents who may be appointed administrators or executors of the estates of persons such as are described in the act. There is nothing whatever in the statute which indicates any intention on the part of the legislature to exclude non-resident executors or administrators from resort to federalPage 302courts under appropriate conditions and the construction which is urged upon us to give to it such an effect is too strained and artificial to be allowed. The judgment of the Circuit Court of Appeals isAffirmed.