In the 1932 case of Public Service Commission of Montana et al. v. Great Northern Utilities Co., the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Great Northern Utilities Co, a private utility company that challenged an order by the Public Service Commission (PSC) of Montana to reduce its rates for gas service. The PSC had determined that the existing rates were unreasonable and ordered a reduction without providing any evidence or explanation as to why they deemed them so. The court held that this action violated due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment because it did not provide sufficient notice or opportunity for hearing before making such decision, thereby depriving Great Northern Utilities Co. of property without due process lawfully required by constitutionally protected rights.

In the dissenting opinion for Public Service Commission of Montana et al. v. Great Northern Utilities Co., it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a rate order issued by the Public Service Commission of Montana infringed upon constitutional rights and exceeded its authority. The dissenting justices believed that, in this case, there had been an improper delegation of legislative power to an administrative body without sufficient guidelines or standards for determining rates, which violated due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. They also contended that while public utilities are subject to regulation in terms of their rates, these regulations must be reasonable and not confiscatory - they should allow utility companies a fair return on their investment. In this case, according to them, such fairness was not observed as Great Northern Utilities Co.'s property was undervalued leading to inadequate returns from imposed rates.