In the 1908 case of Harten v. Loffler, the United States Supreme Court ruled on a dispute involving property rights and inheritance laws. The plaintiff, Harten, was an heir to a piece of land in California that had been purchased by his deceased uncle from the defendant, Loffler. After his uncle's death without any direct heirs or will left behind, Harten claimed ownership over this land as per California state law which allowed distant relatives to inherit if there were no immediate family members alive. However, Loffler argued that under German law (as both he and the deceased were German citizens), only direct descendants could inherit property and since there weren't any for this particular case - he should retain ownership over it. The court held in favor of Harten stating that while they acknowledged foreign nations' right to determine their own inheritance laws within their territories; when it came to properties located within U.S., American state laws would prevail regardless of nationality or domicile status of parties involved.

In the dissenting opinion for Harten v. Loffler, it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a lower court ruling against Mr. Harten failed to adequately consider his rights as an individual under contract law. The dissenting justices believed that Mr. Harten had entered into a valid and legally binding agreement with Mr. Loffler, which should have been honored by the courts despite any potential inconsistencies or ambiguities in its terms or conditions. They also took issue with what they saw as an overly broad interpretation of certain statutes related to contracts and property rights, arguing that this could set a dangerous precedent for future cases involving similar issues.