In the case of Northern Pacific Railway Company v. Trodick, 1910, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Northern Pacific Railway Company. The dispute arose when John Trodick filed a lawsuit against the railway company for damages caused by a fire that started from sparks emitted by one of its locomotives. However, it was found that at the time of filing his claim, Trodick had not yet acquired legal title to the land and thus did not have standing to sue for damages. The court held that only those with legal or equitable title to property at the time damage occurs can bring an action for recovery against responsible parties.

The dissenting opinion in the Northern Pacific Railway Company v. Trodick case argued that the majority's decision to uphold a lower court ruling, which found in favor of Mr. Trodick and awarded him damages for injuries sustained while working on a railway construction project, was incorrect. The dissenting justices believed that there was insufficient evidence to prove negligence on part of the railway company as required by law for such claims. They contended that it is not enough to show merely that an accident occurred; rather, it must be demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that this resulted from some negligent act or omission by the employer - something they felt had not been adequately established during trial proceedings.