Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer

In late 1951, steel mills and their employees had disagreements over the terms for new collective-bargaining agreements. Unable to reach an agreement, the steel-mill employees’ union representative gave notice of intent to strike when the current agreement expired. The federal government unsuccessfully entered the negotiations, and on April 4, 1952, the union gave notice of its intent to strike on April 9, 1952. The importance of steel as a component in weapons and war materials led President Truman to believe that a reduction in steel production from a nationwide strike would immediately jeopardize the nation’s security. The president issued Executive Order 10340 directing Secretary of Commerce Charles Sawyer (defendant) to take control of and continue operating most of the nation’s steel mills. Sawyer promptly issued possessory orders that directed the presidents of the possessed mills to operate the mills on the government’s behalf and subject to Sawyer’s direction. Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. and the other mills (collectively, Youngstown) (plaintiffs) sued Sawyer in district court seeking to invalidate his possessory orders on the ground that the president’s executive order amounted to an unconstitutional exercise of lawmaking, a legislative function reserved expressly for Congress. The district court granted a preliminary injunction in Youngstown’s favor, preventing Sawyer’s continued seizure of the mills. However, the court of appeals swiftly stayed the injunction. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.