Harvey v. Tyler was a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of whether or not an individual had the right to sue for damages caused by another person's negligence. The plaintiff, Harvey, claimed that he suffered injury due to the defendant Tyler's failure to properly maintain his property and sought compensation from him in court. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Harvey, finding that individuals have a legal right to seek redress when they are injured as a result of someone else’s negligence. This ruling established an important precedent regarding personal injury law and set forth clear guidelines for determining liability in such cases going forward.

In Harvey v. Tyler, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a state court had jurisdiction over an action brought by a citizen of another state against citizens of that same other state. The majority opinion held that it did not have such jurisdiction and dismissed the case. In his dissenting opinion, Justice Field argued that there is no constitutional prohibition on states exercising their judicial power in cases involving citizens from other states as long as they do so with due process and fairness towards all parties involved. He further noted that if this were not allowed then many people would be deprived of justice since they could only bring suit in courts located far away from where they live or conduct business. As such, he concluded that denying access to local courts for these individuals would be contrary to public policy and should not be permitted under any circumstances.