In the case of Kendall v. San Juan Silver Mining Company, 1891, the U.S Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a mining company could be held liable for damages caused by its operations to another party's property. The San Juan Silver Mining Company had been conducting mining operations in Colorado and during these activities, it dumped debris onto land owned by Mr. Kendall without his permission causing significant damage to his property. Mr. Kendall sued for compensation but lost at both the district court level and on appeal at the state supreme court level as they ruled that such actions were permitted under Colorado law which allowed miners to deposit waste materials on unoccupied lands. However, when appealed to the U.S Supreme Court, this decision was overturned based on federal laws governing mineral rights which did not permit such actions without consent from landowners or paying them compensation for any resulting damages. Therefore, despite state laws permitting otherwise, federal law took precedence leading to a ruling in favor of Mr.Kendall who was awarded compensation for damages caused by San Juan Silver Mining Company's activities.

In the dissenting opinion for Kendall v. San Juan Silver Mining Company, it was argued that the majority's decision to deny jurisdiction over a case involving a dispute between American citizens and foreign governments contradicted established legal principles. The dissent emphasized that U.S courts have traditionally exercised jurisdiction in cases where an American citizen has been wronged by a foreign government, even if the alleged wrongdoing occurred outside of U.S territory. Furthermore, they contended that denying jurisdiction in such cases would leave American citizens without any legal recourse when their rights are violated abroad. They also disagreed with the majority's interpretation of international law and treaties as limiting judicial power, arguing instead that these should be seen as tools to protect individual rights rather than restrict them.