UNITED STATES - CONTRACTS - EFFECT, WHEN TAX IS DECLARED UNCONSTITUTIONAL, OF PROVISIONS FOR INCREASE OR DECREASE OF PURCHASE PRICE FOR TAXES IMPOSED OR CHANGED

Between May 1935 and January 1936 the federal government purchased flour from respondent through contracts which contained a so-called up and down tax clause. The basic price charged included the A.A.A. processing taxes. During this same period respondent obtained an injunction against the collection of said processing taxes and, as a result of the decision of the Supreme Court in United States v. Butler, was relieved of liability for the tax. In a later suit brought by respondent in the Court of Claims to recover on other contracts, the government claimed a setoff for the amount of these taxes. Judgment having been entered for respondent, the government appealed. Held, reversed, since the passage of the windfall tax by Congress constituted a change in existing processing taxes within the contract provision. United States v. Kansas Flour Mills Corp., (U.S. 1941) 62 S. Ct. 232

TAXATION - INCOME TAX - EXEMPTION OF PROCEEDS OF INSURANCE POLICIES PAYABLE IN THE FORM OF AN ANNUITY

Plaintiff was the beneficiary of a life insurance policy payable in equal installments over a period of twenty years. The deferred payments had been substituted for payment of the face amount of the policy through an option in the policy exercised by the insured a short time before his death. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue included in gross income the amount by which each payment exceeded one-twentieth of the face amount of the policy on the theory that this excess was interest and hence not within the statute exempting insurance from gross income. Plaintiff sued to recover the tax paid. Held, for the commissioner, on the ground that Congress in enacting the statute in question intended to exempt only the face amount of the policy. Kaufman v. United States, (D. C. Va. 1941) 40 F. Supp. 505

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW - DUE PROCESS - NOTICE AND HEARING - VALIDITY OF STATUTE AUTHORIZING SEIZURE OF PROPERTY ILLEGALLY IN POSSESSION OF PAWNBROKER

Complainant, believing his property to be illegally in the possession of defendant pawnbroker, obtained a search warrant, authorized by statute to be issued, on complaint under oath, by any magistrate who is satisfied that there is reasonable cause for complainant\u27s belief. Although the statute required the property to be seized and delivered to complainant on his posting a bond for double the value of the property, the property was not in fact seized. However, actual notice to appear and be heard on a certain date was given to the defendant, even though such notice was not expressly required by the statute. Defendant appeared specially to seek abatement of the warrant, but the court instead ordered possession to be delivered to complainant on his filing the required bond. On appeal, held, the statute is unconstitutional as a violation of the due process clauses of the Federal Constitution and the state constitution because defendant was deprived of the possession of property without a prior notice and hearing. Rassner v. Federal Collateral Society, 299 Mich. 206, 300 N. W. 45 (1941)

INTERNATIONAL LAW - SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY - IMMUNITY FROM SUIT OF FUNDS BELONGING TO A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF A STATE

Plaintiff, the holder of bonds of defendant, the state of Sao Paulo, one of the federated states of the United States of Brazil, attached funds belonging to the defendant and deposited them in a New York bank to meet payments on the bonds. During the depression there had been a general default by Brazil and its states on their external debts because of the unfavorable trade conditions and consequent lack of dollar exchange. The Aranha plan was devised in 1934 to combat these conditions through control of foreign exchange. Each state was required to deposit with the Bank of Brazil full service on its debts and whenever sufficient dollar exchange became available, the government of Brazil ordered payments to be made. Complete control over any disposition of the funds was in the government of Brazil, but ownership remained in the several states. The Brazilian Ambassador through the United States Department of State raised a claim of sovereign immunity on behalf of both Brazil and Sao Paulo. The district court granted immunity from suit to Brazil and dissolved the attachment. Plaintiff appealed. Held, by Justices Chase and Clark, affirmed, because of the sovereign immunity of Sao Paulo; the interests of Brazil in the funds were found insufficient to support immunity. Justice Learned Hand, concurring, affirmed, because the claim of Brazil has been recognized and allowed by the State Department. Sullivan v. Sao Paulo, (C. C. A. 2d, 1941) 122 F. (2d) 355

Interview with James Wilbur Jacobs

Discusses Orville Wright, James Jacobs, Sr., 1924 Dayton air race, Barling bomber, Dayton-Wright Airplane Co., General Motors, landing flaps, engine cowlings, seaplanes, seat belts, safety, Lorin Wright, model airplanes, Horace Wright, and B. Skeet

Safe To Walk? Neighborhood Safety and Physical Activity Among Public Housing Residents

Garry Bennett and colleagues measured exercise levels and obtained opinions on neighborhood safety. They concluded that residing in a neighborhood perceived to be unsafe at night is a barrier to regular physical activity

Androgen receptor expression in male breast carcinoma: lack of clinicopathological association

Androgen receptor (AR) expression was retrospectively analysed in 47 primary male breast carcinomas (MBCs) using a monoclonal antibody on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues. AR immunopositivity was detected in 16 out of 47 (34%) cases. No association was found with patient age, tumour stage, progesterone receptor (PGR) or p53 protein expression. Well-differentiated MBCs tended to be AR positive more often than poorly differentiated ones (P= 0.08). A negative association was found between ARs and cell proliferative activity: MIB-1 scores were higher (25.4%) in AR-negative than in AR-positive cases (21.11%; P= 0.04). A strong positive association (P= 0.0001) was found between ARs and oestrogen receptors (ERs). In univariate analysis, ARs (as well as ERs and PGRs) were not correlated with overall survival; tumour histological grade (P= 0.02), size (P= 0.01), p53 expression (P= 0.0008) and MIB-1 scores (P= 0.0003) had strong prognostic value. In multivariate survival analysis, only p53 expression (P= 0.002) and histological grade (P= 0.02) retained independent prognostic significance. In conclusion, the lack of association between AR and most clinicopathological features and survival, together with the absence of prognostic value for ER/PGR status, suggest that MBCs are biologically different from female breast carcinomas and make it questionable to use antihormonal therapy for patients with MBC. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

TAXATION - INCOME TAX - EXEMPTION OF PROCEEDS OF INSURANCE POLICIES PAYABLE IN THE FORM OF AN ANNUITY

Plaintiff was the beneficiary of a life insurance policy payable in equal installments over a period of twenty years. The deferred payments had been substituted for payment of the face amount of the policy through an option in the policy exercised by the insured a short time before his death. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue included in gross income the amount by which each payment exceeded one-twentieth of the face amount of the policy on the theory that this excess was interest and hence not within the statute exempting insurance from gross income. Plaintiff sued to recover the tax paid. Held, for the commissioner, on the ground that Congress in enacting the statute in question intended to exempt only the face amount of the policy. Kaufman v. United States, (D. C. Va. 1941) 40 F. Supp. 505