Police Jury v. Britton was a case heard by the United States Supreme Court in 1872. The case involved a dispute between the Police Jury of Rapides Parish, Louisiana and the Britton family over the ownership of a tract of land. The Police Jury claimed that the land had been granted to them by the state of Louisiana, while the Brittons argued that they had purchased the land from the state in 1845. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Brittons, finding that the state of Louisiana had indeed sold the land to them in 1845. The Court held that the Police Jury had no right to the land, as the state had already sold it to the Brittons. The Court also held that the Brittons had a valid title to the land, and that the Police Jury had no right to interfere with their ownership. The Court's decision in Police Jury v. Britton established the principle that the state of Louisiana could not sell land that had already been sold to another party. This decision has been cited in numerous cases since then, and has been used to protect the rights of property owners.

In Police Jury v. Britton, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a state law that allowed for taxation of property owned by non-residents violated the Constitution's Contract Clause. The majority opinion held that it did not violate this clause and thus upheld the tax. However, Justice Field dissented from this decision on two grounds: firstly, he argued that since there had been no change in ownership or use of the land at issue since its purchase prior to passage of the law, any attempt to impose a new tax would constitute an unconstitutional impairment of contract rights; secondly, he noted that while states have broad powers when it comes to taxation within their borders they cannot pass laws which interfere with contracts made under another jurisdiction’s laws. He concluded his dissent by stating “I am unable to concur in so sweeping an assertion as is contained in [the] opinion…that all taxes imposed upon lands situated within one State may be collected from persons owning such lands who are citizens or residents without other States."