In the case of DeLand v. Platte County, 1894, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Platte County. The dispute arose when DeLand & Co., a publishing company from Michigan, sold school furniture to Platte County in Nebraska and was paid with bonds issued by the county. However, these bonds were later declared void because they exceeded the county's debt limit as defined by state law. When DeLand sued for payment on these bonds, their claim was rejected both at trial and on appeal due to this illegality. The Supreme Court upheld these decisions stating that it is an established principle that if a contract made by a municipal corporation is beyond its power or authority (ultra vires), it cannot be enforced either in whole or part; nor can any rights under such contract be protected or maintained through legal action. Therefore, since issuing those particular bonds exceeded Platte County's statutory authority under Nebraska law - making them ultra vires acts - no obligation could arise from them which would justify recovery against the county.

The dissenting opinion in the case of DeLand v. Platte County argued that the county should not be held liable for bonds issued to a railroad company, as it was not explicitly authorized by state law. The dissenting justices contended that while there may have been an implicit understanding or expectation that counties would support such projects, this did not constitute legal authority. They further maintained that even if the county had acted in good faith and with reasonable belief in its power to issue these bonds, this still did not make them legally binding obligations. Thus, they believed it was unjust to force taxpayers to bear the burden of paying off these debts when their issuance was questionable at best.