Hammond v. Hastings was a case heard by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1891. The case involved a dispute between two parties over the ownership of a piece of land in the state of Mississippi. The plaintiff, Hammond, claimed that he had purchased the land from the defendant, Hastings, and that Hastings had failed to deliver the deed to the property. The defendant argued that the deed had been delivered and that the plaintiff had failed to pay for the land. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, finding that the defendant had failed to deliver the deed and that the plaintiff had paid for the land. The Court also held that the defendant was liable for damages for failing to deliver the deed. The Court further held that the plaintiff was entitled to a lien on the property for the amount of the purchase price. The decision in Hammond v. Hastings established the principle that a party who fails to deliver a deed to a piece of property is liable for damages and that the purchaser is entitled to a lien on the property for the amount of the purchase price. This case is still cited today in cases involving disputes over the ownership of real estate.

In the dissenting opinion of Hammond v. Hastings, Justice White argued that the majority's decision was wrongfully decided and should be overturned. He believed that the court had failed to properly consider all relevant facts in its ruling, including whether or not there was a genuine dispute as to material fact between the parties involved. In his view, this case should have been remanded back to state court for further proceedings because it could not be determined from the record before them if there were any disputed issues of material fact which would require resolution by a jury trial. Furthermore, he felt that summary judgment was inappropriate given how much evidence existed on both sides of this issue and thus required more than just an examination of pleadings and affidavits; instead it needed full consideration at trial with witnesses being called upon for testimony in order to reach a fair conclusion based on all available information.