In the Northern Pacific Railroad Company v. Patterson case of 1893, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Northern Pacific Railroad Company. The dispute arose over land ownership rights granted to the railroad company by Congress under an act passed in 1864. Patterson claimed that he had acquired a portion of this land before it was given to the railroad company and therefore held rightful ownership. However, his claim was based on a preemption right which required him to establish residence and make improvements on the property within a certain time frame after filing his claim - something he failed to do according to evidence presented at trial. The court found that since Patterson did not fulfill these requirements, his preemption right lapsed and thus could not be used as basis for claiming ownership against Northern Pacific's congressional grant. Furthermore, it clarified that such grants from Congress are considered "public statutory offers" which can be accepted by any party meeting its terms first - in this case being fulfilled by Northern Pacific through construction of their railway line across said lands.

In the dissenting opinion for Northern Pacific Railroad Company v. Patterson, it was argued that the majority's decision to deny Patterson's claim on a land grant was incorrect. The dissenting justices believed that the language of the Act of Congress, which granted lands to railroad companies for construction purposes, should be interpreted more liberally in favor of settlers like Patterson who had made improvements on such lands before they were identified and certified as part of a railroad grant. They contended that these settlers should not be penalized due to administrative delays or errors in identifying and certifying these lands. Furthermore, they disagreed with the majority’s interpretation about when exactly title passed from public domain into private hands under this law; according to them it happened only after certification by government officials rather than at an earlier point determined by survey lines drawn up by railroads themselves.