The Atalanta case was a dispute between the United States and France over ownership of a ship called The Atalanta. The French government had seized the vessel in 1812, claiming it as their own property. However, an American citizen named Foussat argued that he owned the ship prior to its seizure by France and sought compensation for his losses from the US government. In this Supreme Court case, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in favor of Foussat's claim that he was indeed entitled to compensation from the US government due to their failure to protect his property rights when they allowed France to seize it without any legal justification or process. This ruling established important precedent regarding how foreign governments must treat private citizens' property rights under international law and set forth guidelines for future cases involving similar disputes between nations.

In The Atalanta case, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a French vessel captured during the Napoleonic Wars could be considered as an enemy ship. Justice Story wrote a dissenting opinion in which he argued that although it is true that France and the United States were at war when this particular vessel was taken, there had been no formal declaration of war between them. He further noted that even if such a declaration had been made, it would not have applied retroactively to vessels seized prior to its issuance. Therefore, since there was no legal basis for considering this particular vessel as an enemy ship under international law or U.S. domestic law at the time of capture, Justice Story concluded that it should not be treated as such and thus denied compensation for its owner's loss from either country involved in the conflict.