Munn v. Illinois
United States Supreme Court
94 U.S. 113 (1876)
Relevant factsFree
Munn and Scott (defendants) operated a Chicago grain-storage business that, along with a small group of similar firms, had acquired monopoly control over grain-storage rates charged to farmers; when Illinois (plaintiff) passed a law in 1871 capping those storage rates, Munn and Scott refused to comply and were successfully prosecuted, with the Illinois Supreme Court affirming their conviction before they appealed further.
IssueFree
Whether the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment requires that a private business, in which the public has a significant interest, be compensated for losses caused by government regulation of its rates.