Enoch C. Roberts brought a case against James M. Cooper to the Supreme Court of the United States, claiming that he was entitled to compensation for services rendered as an agent in procuring subscriptions for stock in a railroad company. The lower court had ruled against him and awarded damages to Cooper instead, which prompted Roberts' appeal. In its ruling, the Supreme Court found that although there were some irregularities with regard to how Roberts conducted his business as an agent, they did not invalidate his right to receive payment from Cooper since it could be proven that he had performed all of his duties faithfully and diligently according to their agreement. Furthermore, any losses incurred by Cooper due to these irregularities should have been taken into account when determining what amount of compensation was owed by him rather than denying Roberts entirely on this basis alone; thus reversing the decision made at trial level and remanding back for further proceedings accordingly.

In the case of Enoch C. Roberts v. James M. Cooper, Justice McLean delivered a dissenting opinion in which he argued that the plaintiff had not been given due process under law and was therefore entitled to relief from the court. He contended that although Mr. Roberts had received notice of his suit against Mr Cooper, it was insufficient as it did not specify any particular cause or demand for which he sought redress; thus, there could be no legal determination made on whether or not his claim should have been granted by the lower courts without further information being provided by either party involved in this dispute. Furthermore, Justice McLean asserted that since neither party presented evidence at trial to support their respective claims nor were they allowed an opportunity to do so before judgment was rendered against them - thereby depriving both parties of their right to a fair hearing - then justice would only be served if this decision were reversed and remanded back down for another trial with all necessary facts included in order for proper judgement can be reached according to law and precedent set forth within our judicial system