Legislation: Federal Tort Claims Act: Applicable to Military Personnel

An automobile containing two furloughed soldiers and their father was struck by a negligently operated army vehicle, resulting in the death of one soldier and injury to the other two occupants. In a suit against the government under the Federal Tort Claims Act the father and injured soldier recovered in their own right and the father also recovered as administrator of the deceased soldier's estate. The Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the judgments in favor of the servicemen, holding that there was an implied exception in the act prohibiting such suits because of benefits available to servicemen in the form of disability payments and death gratuities. On appeal, held, reversed. The language of the statute is clear; "any claim'' does not mean "any claim but that of a serviceman." Brooks v. United States, 337 U.S. 49, 69 S.Ct. 918 (1949).