In the case of Standard Industries, Inc. v. Tigrett Industries, Inc., et al., 1969, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Standard Industries. The dispute arose when Tigrett accused Standard of patent infringement over a device used to load shotgun shells. However, it was found that this device had already been described in an expired patent and thus was part of public domain knowledge at the time Tigrett filed for their patent application; hence they could not claim exclusive rights to it under their own subsequent patent grant. Therefore, no infringement could have occurred as claimed by Tigrett since anyone is free to use or manufacture devices based on expired patents without any legal repercussions.

The dissenting opinion in the case of Standard Industries, Inc. v. Tigrett Industries, Inc., et al., argued that the majority's decision to reverse and remand was not justified by the record or applicable law. The dissent contended that there was no clear error in the District Court's finding that Standard had failed to prove its claim of patent infringement against Tigrett. It also disagreed with the majority’s interpretation of certain key terms used in Standard’s patent claims, arguing instead for a narrower construction more consistent with established principles of patent law and precedent cases. Furthermore, it criticized what it saw as an overly broad application of doctrine regarding equivalents which could potentially stifle innovation and competition within industry sectors.