West Coast Hotel v. Parrish (1937)

1) Link to the Actual Opinion
Read the U.S. Reports opinion (PDF)

2) Summary of the Opinion
Elsie Parrish, a hotel chambermaid, sued for back wages under Washington State’s minimum wage law for women. The hotel argued the law violated “freedom of contract.” The Supreme Court upheld the minimum wage law, rejecting the Lochner-era doctrine that struck down economic regulations.

3) Why It Mattered
This case marked the end of the Lochner era. The Court shifted toward deference to legislatures on economic and social regulation, opening the door for New Deal reforms.

4) What It Provided or Took Away

• Provided: Broad judicial approval of minimum wage and worker protection laws.
• Took Away: The rigid doctrine of “freedom of contract” as a constitutional barrier to regulation.

5) Overreach or Proper Role?
This was a correction — the Court stepped back from imposing its own economic theories and allowed elected legislatures to regulate in the public interest.

6) Plain-English Impact Today
Minimum wage laws and workplace protections exist nationwide because the Court stopped blocking them after West Coast Hotel. It’s why states and Congress can set labor standards without fear of them being struck down as unconstitutional.

• Substantive Due Process
• Economic Regulation
• Lochner Era