In the case of Norfolk and Western Railway Company v. Conley, Attorney General of the State of West Virginia in 1914, the Supreme Court dealt with a dispute over taxation between a railway company and the state government. The Norfolk and Western Railway Company argued that it was being unfairly taxed by West Virginia because its property within the state was assessed at a higher value than other similar properties. The court ruled in favor of Norfolk and Western, stating that while states have broad powers to tax businesses operating within their borders, they must do so fairly. This means not assessing one business's property at a higher rate than another's without just cause or explanation. Therefore, West Virginia had violated this principle by taxing Norfolk and Western more heavily than comparable companies.

In the dissenting opinion for Norfolk and Western Railway Company v. Conley, it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a West Virginia statute requiring railroads to provide separate but equal accommodations for black passengers violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The dissenters believed that this law inherently promoted racial discrimination by mandating segregation based on race, which they viewed as incompatible with constitutional principles of equality under law. They contended that such laws were not genuinely aimed at promoting public welfare or safety, but rather served to perpetuate harmful stereotypes and social divisions between races. Furthermore, they expressed concern about potential negative implications of this ruling on future civil rights cases involving similar issues of state-mandated racial segregation in other public facilities or services.