In the case of McMillan Contracting Company et al. v. Abernathy et al., 1923, the U.S Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a contract for public work in Alabama could be enforced despite it being made on a Sunday, which violated state law at that time. The court held that while making contracts on Sundays was indeed prohibited by Alabama law, this did not render such contracts void or unenforceable because there were no explicit provisions stating so within the statute itself. Therefore, even though the contract between McMillan Contracting Company and Abernathy had been formed on a Sunday contrary to local custom and regulation, it remained legally binding as per federal interpretation of state laws.

The dissenting opinion in the case of McMillan Contracting Company et al. v. Abernathy et al., argued that the majority's decision to uphold a state law allowing for damages without proof of negligence was unconstitutional. The dissent contended that this law violated due process rights by not requiring evidence of fault before imposing liability, and thus unfairly burdened businesses with costs they may not have been responsible for causing. Furthermore, it was argued that such laws could discourage economic activity by creating an unpredictable business environment where companies could be held liable for accidents even if they had taken all reasonable precautions to prevent them. This view maintained that while states should have broad power to regulate business activities within their borders, these powers must still respect constitutional protections against arbitrary or unreasonable government actions.