In the 1945 case of Lavender, Administrator v. Kurn et al., Trustees, et al., the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a plaintiff who had sued for damages following his brother's death at a railroad yard operated by Missouri Pacific Railroad Company. The deceased was found dead under mysterious circumstances and it was unclear whether he died due to an accident or foul play. The jury awarded damages to the plaintiff based on circumstantial evidence that suggested negligence on part of the railroad company might have led to his death. However, this verdict was overturned by an appellate court which held that there wasn't enough evidence proving negligence from the defendant’s side. The Supreme Court reversed this decision stating that it is not necessary for all circumstances pointed out by circumstantial evidence to be perfectly consistent with each other as long as they reasonably justify an inference supporting one conclusion over another; here being - negligent act leading to accidental death rather than intentional murder or suicide.

In the dissenting opinion for Lavender v. Kurn, Justice Frankfurter argued that the jury's verdict was based on speculation rather than evidence. He believed there were multiple possible explanations for how the accident occurred and none of them could be definitively proven with the available evidence. Therefore, he thought it was inappropriate to hold defendants liable when there wasn't clear proof they were responsible for causing harm. Furthermore, he criticized majority's decision as an overreach into state law matters by federal courts because this case involved interpretation of Missouri’s laws regarding negligence and causation in personal injury cases which should have been left to Missouri courts instead of being decided by Supreme Court.