In this Supreme Court case, John Bacon and Thomas Robins, surviving trustees of the Bank of the United States, William R. White and John Hooper (citizens of Pennsylvania), Lewis Phoenix and John D. Beers (citizens of New York) sued on behalf of themselves as well as all other stockholders in the late Commercial Bank Of Natchez who were citizens from states other than Mississippi. The defendants included William Robertson, Philip Hoggatt, Henry Chotard and John F Gillespie - all stockholders in said bank who were citizens from Mississippi. The complainants sought relief by contributing to expenses for this suit against these defendants.

In the dissenting opinion of John Bacon and Thomas Robins, surviving trustees of the Bank of the United States, William R. White and John Hooper, citizens of Pennsylvania, Lewis Phoenix and John D. Beers, citizens of New York v. William Robertson et al., it was argued that a state court could not exercise jurisdiction over non-resident stockholders in a suit brought by them against resident stockholders for an accounting under their trust agreement with respect to certain assets held by them as trustees on behalf of all parties involved. The dissent further argued that such matters should be decided in federal courts since they involve questions arising from interstate commerce which are beyond the scope or power granted to state courts under Article III Section 2 Clause 1of the U.S Constitution which grants original jurisdiction to federal courts over cases involving controversies between two or more states or between citizens from different states .