Bowman Transportation, Inc. v. Arkansas-Best Freight System, Inc., et al.

Decided December 23, 1974. William Orville Douglas delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 73-1055 · 419 U.S. 281 (1974) · Cited 2,871 times

We don’t yet publish a summary of this opinion — read the official text below for the Court’s holding and reasoning.

How the Justices voted

Decided 9–0.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Universal Camera Corp. v. National Labor Relations Board · 340 U.S. 474 (1951)
• Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, Inc. v. Volpe · 401 U.S. 402 (1971)
• Interstate Commerce Commission v. J-T Transport Co. · 368 U.S. 81 (1961)
• Securities & Exchange Commission v. Chenery Corp. · 332 U.S. 194 (1947)
• Consolo v. Federal Maritime Commission · 383 U.S. 607 (1966)
• Burlington Truck Lines, Inc. v. United States · 371 U.S. 156 (1962)
• Ohio Bell Telephone Co. v. Public Utilities Commission · 301 U.S. 292 (1937)
• United States v. Pierce Auto Freight Lines, Inc. · 327 U.S. 515 (1946)
• St. Joseph Stock Yards Co. v. United States · 298 U.S. 38 (1936)
• Colorado Interstate Gas Co. v. Federal Power Commission · 324 U.S. 581 (1945)
• McLean Trucking Co. v. United States · 321 U.S. 67 (1944)
• United States & Interstate Commerce Commission v. Abilene & Southern Railway Co. · 265 U.S. 274 (1924)
• Market Street Railway Co. v. Railroad Commission of California · 324 U.S. 548 (1945)
• Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Co. v. United States · 284 U.S. 248 (1932)
• American Trucking Associations, Inc. v. Frisco Transportation Co. · 358 U.S. 133 (1958)
• Gulf States Utilities Co. v. Federal Power Commission · 411 U.S. 747 (1973)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• National Ass'n of Home Builders v. Defenders of Wildlife · 551 U.S. 644 (2007)
• Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro · 579 U.S. 211 (2016)
• Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation v. LTV Corp. · 496 U.S. 633 (1990)
• Interstate Commerce Commission v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers · 482 U.S. 270 (1987)
• Judulang v. Holder · 565 U.S. 42 (2011)
• Bowen v. American Hospital Assn. · 476 U.S. 610 (1986)
• Garland v. Ming Dai · 593 U.S. 357 (2021)
• Motor Vehicle Mfrs. Assn. of United States, Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Automobile Ins. Co. · 463 U.S. 29 (1983)
• Immigration & Naturalization Service v. Abudu · 485 U.S. 94 (1988)
• Federal Communications Commission v. Fox Television Stations, Inc. · 556 U.S. 502 (2009)
• Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. · 462 U.S. 87 (1983)
• Franklin v. Massachusetts · 505 U.S. 788 (1992)
• Zauderer v. Office of Disciplinary Counsel of the Supreme Court of Ohio · 471 U.S. 626 (1985)
• Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation v. Environmental Protection Agency · 540 U.S. 461 (2004)
• Ohio v. Environmental Protection Agency · 603 U.S. 279 (2024)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

Explore from here

William Orville Douglas’s profile · All Supreme Court opinions · The Supreme Court

Source: the U.S. Reports via govinfo.gov; authoring Justice and vote lineup from the Supreme Court Database (Washington University). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).