National Labor Relations Board v. Jones and Laughlin Steel Co.

US Supreme Court decision of 1937 dealing with federal jurisdiction over intrastate trade. Jones and Laughlin appealed an NLRB order to reinstate several employees fired for union activities. The steel company argued that as an exclusively intrastate trader, it was immune to federal regulatory measures. The Court voted 5 to 4 to uphold the NLRB ruling, judging that since the steel industry was so intrinsically an interstate business the actions of Jones and Laughlin must have affected interstate commerce. The Court ruled that the ‘stream of commerce’ placed local steel companies within federal jurisdiction.