In the 1895 case of Jacksonville, Mayport, Pablo Railway and Navigation Company v. Hooper, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Hooper. The dispute arose when a railway company failed to pay for land that it had agreed to purchase from Hooper. The court held that even though there was no written contract between both parties as required by Florida law at the time, an oral agreement existed which was later confirmed through letters exchanged between them. These letters were deemed sufficient evidence of their agreement and therefore enforceable under law despite not being formally drafted contracts. This ruling established a precedent where written confirmation can serve as proof of an oral contract if it clearly indicates terms agreed upon by involved parties.

In the dissenting opinion for Jacksonville, Mayport, Pablo Railway and Navigation Company v. Hooper (1895), Justice Brewer argued that the majority's decision was inconsistent with previous rulings of the Court. He contended that a state legislature cannot interfere with or impair contracts between private parties by changing their terms without consent from both sides. In this case, he believed Florida’s legislation had indeed interfered in such a way by altering an existing contract between the railway company and its bondholders to reduce interest rates on bonds issued before 1887 from eight percent to seven percent annually. This unilateral change violated what he saw as fundamental principles of justice and fairness underpinning contractual law - namely, respect for freely negotiated agreements made in good faith between competent parties.