The U.S. Supreme Court case Lane, Secretary of the Interior, et al. v. Morrison was a dispute over land rights involving members of the Chippewa Tribe in Minnesota and the Department of Interior in 1917. The issue at hand was whether or not certain lands that were ceded by the tribe to the United States under an agreement made on October 2nd, 1889 could be sold without obtaining consent from individual tribal members who had been allotted parcels within those lands as part of their reservation rights under previous treaties with federal government. The court ruled against Morrison and other tribal members arguing for individual consent requirements, holding that Congress had plenary power over Indian affairs which included authority to unilaterally alter or abrogate treaty provisions regarding land allotments if it served a greater public interest.

The dissenting opinion in the case of Lane v. Morrison argued that the Chippewa Tribe of Indians in Minnesota should have been allowed to sue for damages caused by logging on their reservation land, which was carried out without their consent and against federal law. The majority ruling held that because Congress had not explicitly authorized such lawsuits, they were barred under sovereign immunity doctrine. However, the dissent contended this interpretation was overly narrow and failed to consider broader principles of justice and equity. They believed that when a wrong has been committed by government officials acting outside their authority - as alleged here - it is only fair for those harmed to have legal recourse. Furthermore, they pointed out that allowing such suits could serve an important public interest function by deterring future abuses of power.