In Fisk v. Jefferson Police Jury, the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to decide whether a Louisiana statute that allowed a police jury to levy a tax on the property of a railroad company was constitutional. The railroad company argued that the statute violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court held that the statute was constitutional. The Court reasoned that the police jury had the power to levy taxes on the property of the railroad company, and that the Due Process Clause did not prohibit the police jury from exercising that power. The Court also noted that the statute did not discriminate against the railroad company, and that the tax was not excessive or oppressive. The Court concluded that the statute was constitutional and that the police jury had the power to levy the tax on the property of the railroad company. The Court's decision was unanimous.

In Fisk v. Jefferson Police Jury, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a Louisiana statute that allowed for the taxation of certain railroad property violated the Constitution's Contract Clause. The majority opinion held that it did not violate this clause and thus upheld the law. Justice Field dissented from this decision, arguing that by taxing these railroads in such an unequal manner, it constituted a violation of their rights under both state and federal contracts as well as other constitutional provisions. He argued further that if states were allowed to tax railroads unequally then they would be able to manipulate them into providing services at lower rates than those agreed upon in their contracts with one another or with private parties; thus allowing them to gain an unfair advantage over competitors who had no control over how much they could charge for services provided on public roads or railways. In conclusion, he believed that any attempt by states to interfere with existing contractual arrangements between private parties should be considered unconstitutional unless there is clear evidence showing otherwise.