''United States v. Dotterweich'', 320 U.S. 277 (1943), was a
United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
case in which the Court upheld
strict,
vicarious liability
Vicarious liability is a form of a strict, secondary liability that arises under the common law doctrine of agency, ''respondeat superior'', the responsibility of the superior for the acts of their subordinate or, in a broader sense, the res ...
for the president of a company convicted of a
public welfare offense.
Decision
Defendant Dotterweich was the president and general manager of a company that purchased drugs from a manufacturer, repackaged them, and shipped them with a new label. Dotterweich was convicted of a
misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than adm ...
under the
Food and Drugs Act of 1906
The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, also known as Dr. Wiley's Law, was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws which was enacted by Congress in the 20th century and led to the creation of the Food and Drug Administration. ...
, which prohibited the shipment of adulterated and misbranded drugs in
interstate commerce
The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among ...
. The Supreme Court upheld Dotterweich's conviction even though he did not directly participate in the proscribed shipments. The Court reasoned that this was a public welfare offense where strict, vicarious liability was appropriate because the president of a company ought to be aware of the regulations associated with their business, and that the president was in a much better position than members of the public to protect against the possible dangers of the product.
[Bonnie, p. 266]
See also
*
List of United States Supreme Court cases
This page serves as an index of lists of United States Supreme Court cases. The United States Supreme Court is the highest federal court of the United States.
By Chief Justice
Court historians and other legal scholars consider each Chief J ...
*
Lists of United States Supreme Court cases by volume
The following is a complete list of cases decided by the United States Supreme Court organized by volume of the ''United States Reports'' in which they appear. This is a list of volumes of ''U.S. Reports'', and the links point to the contents of e ...
* ''
United States v. Park''
References
{{reflist
External links
Opinion at Justia.com
United States Supreme Court cases
United States Supreme Court criminal cases
1943 in United States case law
United States Supreme Court cases of the Stone Court