In the 1913 case of Billings v. United States, the Supreme Court examined whether a federal law that imposed taxes on inheritances was constitutional. The plaintiff, Frederick H. Billings, had inherited property from his father and argued that this tax violated his Fifth Amendment rights against being deprived of property without due process of law. He also contended that it infringed upon states' rights to regulate inheritance under the Tenth Amendment. The court ruled in favor of the government, upholding the constitutionality of inheritance taxes at a federal level. It found no violation with respect to either amendment cited by Billings; it held that taxation is not equivalent to deprivation under due process clause and does not infringe upon state powers as per Tenth Amendment since both levels can simultaneously exercise their taxing power over same subject matter.

In the dissenting opinion for Billings v. United States, Justice Holmes disagreed with the majority's interpretation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act and its application to this case. He argued that a monopoly in itself is not illegal under the act unless it restrains trade or commerce among several states or with foreign nations. In his view, there was no evidence presented that demonstrated such restraint by American Tobacco Company’s control over raw tobacco purchases. Furthermore, he contended that if every acquisition of property which might be used to restrain trade were deemed illegal under this law, then almost any business activity could potentially be considered unlawful. Therefore, he believed that only those actions which directly and materially restrict competition should fall within its scope.