In the 1906 case Frank v. Vollkommer, the United States Supreme Court dealt with a dispute over property rights and inheritance laws. The plaintiff, Frank, was an heir to a deceased man's estate who had left his entire fortune to his widow in Germany without making any provisions for his children from a previous marriage living in America. After the widow died, her will stipulated that her wealth would be distributed among German charities rather than going to her stepchildren as per American law at that time which stated that if no provision is made for children in their parent's will then they are entitled to half of their parent’s estate after the death of both parents. Frank sued Vollkommer (the executor of the widow's will) arguing he should have received part of this inheritance under U.S law but lost both at trial and on appeal because it was determined by courts that German law applied since all parties were domiciled there when they died. The Supreme Court upheld these decisions stating it is not within its jurisdiction or power to interfere with foreign countries' administration or distribution of estates located within their territories even though different rules might apply domestically.

The dissenting opinion in the case of Frank v. Vollkomme argued that the majority's decision to uphold a lower court ruling, which held that an individual could be extradited from one state to another for trial on criminal charges even if they were not physically present in the state at the time of their alleged crime, was incorrect. The dissenting justices believed this interpretation violated constitutional protections against unlawful seizure and detention without due process. They contended that extradition should only apply when someone flees a jurisdiction after committing a crime there, not simply because they are accused of having committed an act elsewhere deemed illegal by another state's laws. This view emphasized respect for states' rights and individual liberties over broad interpretations of federal power.