--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: for one hundred years people have…" description: "\"“for one hundred years people have believed that the 1886 case Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad did in fact conclude that “corporations ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/thom-hartmann-13946_corporations_for-one-hundred-years-people-have-believ_1097161.png" --- # for one hundred years people have believed that the 1886… ![“for one hundred years people have believed that the 1886 case Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad did in fact conclude that “corporations are persons.” But this book will show that the Court never stated this: it was added by the court reporter who wrote the introduction to the…” quote by Thom Hartmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/thom-hartmann-13946_corporations_for-one-hundred-years-people-have-believ_1097161.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/thom-hartmann-13946_corporations_for-one-hundred-years-people-have-believ_1097161.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/thom-hartmann-13946_corporations_for-one-hundred-years-people-have-believ_1097161.png) > ““for one hundred years people have believed that the 1886 case Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad did in fact conclude that “corporations are persons.” But this book will show that the Court never stated this: it was added by the court reporter who wrote the introduction to the decision, a commentary called a headnote.”” [Thom Hartmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-hartmann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The claim that Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad granted corporate personhood originates from a reporter’s headnote, not the Court’s opinion. **In simple terms:** Corporate personhood claim stems from a headnote. Key Takeaway Question legal foundations critically. Themes law corporate rights history Mood analytical critical Type legal historical When to use this quote - legal education - policy reform - activist campaigning Key Concepts jurisprudence interpretation constitutional law Questions to Reflect On - What implications does this have for corporate regulation? - How should courts address historical misconceptions? A Different Perspective Headnotes are not binding precedent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Corporations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations/) ## Related quotes > [“Her crime cost nobody their life, but she famously was escorted off to a women’s prison. Had she been a corporation instead of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-hartmann/her-crime-cost-nobody-their-life-but-she-famously-was-escorted-off-to/) [Thom Hartmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-hartmann/) > [“Traditional English, Dutch, French, and Spanish law didn’t say that corporations are people. 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J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [I'm not only a fan of Apple products, I have stock in the company. I think Steve Jobs has started one of the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kid-rock/i-m-not-only-a-fan-of-apple-products-i-have-stock-in-the-company-i/) [Kid Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kid-rock/) > [“Subsequently there ensues an epoch of complex, proliferating intrigues and conspiracies among the ranks of double agents, whose agendas become so densely intertwined that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/subsequently-there-ensues-an-epoch-of-complex-proliferating-intrigues/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? 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Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-r-raymond/) ## More by Thom Hartmann > [In the 24 hours since this time yesterday, over 200,000 acres of rainforest have been destroyed in our world. Fully 13 million tons of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-hartmann/in-the-24-hours-since-this-time-yesterday-over-200-000-acres-of/) [Thom Hartmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-hartmann/) > [“Traditional English, Dutch, French, and Spanish law didn’t say that corporations are people. 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Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Subsequently there ensues an epoch of complex, proliferating intrigues and conspiracies among the ranks of double agents, whose agendas become so densely intertwined that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/subsequently-there-ensues-an-epoch-of-complex-proliferating-intrigues/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [I'm not only a fan of Apple products, I have stock in the company. I think Steve Jobs has started one of the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kid-rock/i-m-not-only-a-fan-of-apple-products-i-have-stock-in-the-company-i/) [Kid Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kid-rock/) > [At Epcot Center the Disney corporation has focused its attention on two things greatly in need of Disneyfication: the tedious future and the annoying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/at-epcot-center-the-disney-corporation-has-focused-its-attention-on/) [P. J. 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They're counting on you to be standing at attention with your hand over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/they-re-counting-on-your-patriotism-to-distract-you-from-their/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) [Browse all 1,673 Corporations quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“for one hundred years people have believed that the 1886 case Santa Clara County v. 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