In the case of Hightower et al. v. American National Bank of Macon, Georgia (1923), the U.S Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a bank could be held liable for honoring checks that were fraudulently endorsed by an employee who had been entrusted with them by their employer. The court ruled in favor of the bank, stating that it was not responsible for identifying fraudulent endorsements on checks presented to it unless there were clear signs indicating forgery or if they had knowledge about such misconducts beforehand. This decision set a precedent and established rules regarding liability in cases involving forged endorsements on negotiable instruments like checks.

The dissenting opinion in Hightower et al. v. American National Bank of Macon, Georgia argued that the majority's decision was not consistent with the principles of equity and justice. The dissenting justices believed that the bank should not be allowed to profit from its own wrongdoing by foreclosing on a property it had fraudulently induced the plaintiffs to purchase at an inflated price. They contended that allowing such behavior would undermine public confidence in financial institutions and encourage fraudulent practices in business transactions. Furthermore, they disagreed with the majority's interpretation of Georgia law regarding foreclosure sales, arguing that it did not adequately protect borrowers' rights or take into account their reasonable expectations when entering into mortgage agreements.