In the case of Matthews v. Warner, 1891, the U.S Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a contract for land purchase could be enforced when it had been made under duress. The plaintiff, Matthews, alleged that he had signed a contract to sell his property to Warner due to threats and intimidation from Warner's agents. He sought relief from this agreement on these grounds. However, the court ruled in favor of defendant Warner stating that there was insufficient evidence presented by Matthews proving coercion or undue influence during the signing of said contract. Therefore, despite allegations of duress and intimidation leading up to its formation; without substantial proof supporting such claims - as per legal requirements - contracts are deemed valid and enforceable by law.

In the dissenting opinion for Matthews v. Warner, 1891, it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a tax on commercial paper issued by corporations and used in interstate commerce violated the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The dissenting justices contended that such taxation constituted an impermissible burden on interstate commerce because it directly affected transactions between states. They believed this interpretation was consistent with previous court rulings which held that states could not impose taxes or regulations that interfered with interstate trade or business activities conducted across state lines. Furthermore, they expressed concern about potential negative economic consequences if individual states were allowed to levy their own separate taxes on corporate securities involved in interstate transactions; arguing this would create a chaotic and unmanageable system of taxation detrimental to national economic interests.