The U.S. Supreme Court case Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company v. City of Goldsboro, North Carolina in 1913 revolved around the issue of taxation and valuation methods for railroad property within city limits. The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company argued that the City of Goldsboro had unfairly assessed its property value at a higher rate than other properties, leading to an unjust tax burden on the company. The court ruled in favor of the railroad company, finding that it was unconstitutional for municipalities to assess taxes based on a different method or standard from what is applied to other real estate within their jurisdiction. This ruling established important precedent regarding equal protection under law when it comes to taxation policies.

In the dissenting opinion for Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company v. City of Goldsboro, it was argued that the court should not have interfered with North Carolina's taxation system. The justice believed that there were no constitutional issues at stake and therefore, it was inappropriate to intervene in a state matter. He pointed out that the railroad company had agreed to pay taxes when they accepted their charter from the state and thus, they should be held accountable for this obligation. Furthermore, he disagreed with the majority's interpretation of "just compensation," arguing instead that just compensation does not mean equal treatment but rather fair market value. In his view, if every taxpayer could challenge their tax assessment based on others' assessments being lower or different than theirs then it would lead to chaos within our taxation system.