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On April 15, 2008, the Supreme Court decided MeadWestvaco Corp. v. Illinois Dept. of Revenue, ruling that under the Commerce and Due Processs Clauses, the test for whether Illinois could tax Mead's gains on the sale of Lexis was whether the asset being sold, Lexis, was a unitary part of the business that Mead conducted in the taxing state, rather than (as the Illinois courts had ruled) whether Lexis served an operational function in Mead's business.  Eileen O'Connor, a partner in Washington DC's Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw, & Pittman, discusses the case.

 

Oral Argument - January 16, 2008:
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/06-1413.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decision - April 15, 2008:
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/07pdf/06-1413.pdf

 


 

 

 

 

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