In the case of Malony v. Adsit, 1899, the United States Supreme Court dealt with a dispute over property rights and inheritance laws. The plaintiff, Malony, claimed that he was entitled to certain properties in Chicago as an heir of his deceased brother who had acquired them through preemption rights under federal law before his death. However, these properties were sold by Adsit (the defendant), who acted as an executor for another claimant's estate which also asserted ownership over these lands based on tax sales made after the original owner's death. The court ruled against Malony stating that even though there might have been irregularities in how taxes were assessed leading up to those sales; it did not invalidate them since they weren't challenged within statutory time limits set by Illinois state law. Furthermore, it held that while federal preemption laws gave settlers exclusive right to purchase public land from government once their claims are recognized; this didn’t exempt such lands from being taxed or sold off due to non-payment of taxes like any other private property would be subject to under state laws.

In the dissenting opinion for Malony v. Adsit, Justice Harlan disagreed with the majority's decision to dismiss the case on jurisdictional grounds. He argued that federal courts should have jurisdiction over cases involving state laws that potentially violate constitutional rights or federal law. In this particular case, he believed it was necessary to examine whether a Michigan statute allowing creditors to seize and sell debtor property without notice violated due process under the Fourteenth Amendment of U.S Constitution. The justice contended that such an examination would not interfere with state sovereignty but rather ensure compliance with national standards of justice as required by constitutionally guaranteed rights. Therefore, in his view, dismissing this case denied potential protection of these fundamental rights.