The U.S. Supreme Court case Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Company v. Matthews in 1898 revolved around a dispute over land ownership rights between the railroad company and an individual named Matthews. The court had to decide whether or not the railroad company's right of way grant from Congress extended beyond its tracks to include adjacent lands for purposes such as building stations, side-tracks etc., even if those lands were privately owned by individuals like Matthews at that time. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the railroad company stating that their Congressional grant did indeed give them such rights because it was necessary for operating their railway effectively and efficiently. This decision reinforced the power of federal grants over private property rights when it came to infrastructure development.

In the dissenting opinion for ATCHISON, TOPEKA AND SANTA FE RAILROAD COMPANY v. MATTHEWS, it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a Kansas statute requiring railroads to provide scales for weighing livestock was an overreach of state power and violated the Fourteenth Amendment. The dissenting justices believed that this law interfered with interstate commerce by imposing burdensome regulations on railroad companies operating across state lines. They contended that such matters should be regulated at a federal level rather than by individual states in order to ensure uniformity and prevent undue hardship on businesses involved in interstate trade. Furthermore, they expressed concern about potential bias against out-of-state corporations as local juries could potentially favor local interests over those of foreign entities when resolving disputes related to these laws.