The U.S. Supreme Court case Columbia Water Power Company v. Columbia Electric Street Railway Light and Power Company in 1898 revolved around a dispute over water rights between two power companies in South Carolina: the plaintiff, a water company, and the defendant, an electric company. The former accused the latter of unlawfully diverting water from its canal to generate electricity without permission or compensation. The court ruled that while both parties had rights to use the river's waters for their respective utilities under state law, neither had exclusive right over it; thus any diversion by one party causing substantial injury to another would be considered unlawful unless agreed upon otherwise by both parties involved. In this particular case however, no such agreement existed hence making defendant’s act illegal.

In the dissenting opinion for Columbia Water Power Company v. Columbia Electric Street Railway Light and Power Company, it was argued that the majority's decision failed to properly consider the rights of riparian owners under South Carolina law. The dissent emphasized that state law clearly established a right to use water flowing through one's property in any manner not harmful to other riparian proprietors. It contended that this included using water power for generating electricity, even if such usage diminished or altered the flow of water downstream. Furthermore, it disagreed with the majority’s interpretation of an 1882 statute granting certain privileges to mill owners as limiting these rights; instead, they believed this legislation merely clarified existing laws without imposing new restrictions on riparian proprietors' rights. Therefore, according to their view, by preventing Columbia Water Power Company from utilizing its full legal entitlements under state law due simply because another company had built a dam upstream first was unjustifiable and contrary to established principles of equity.