The Nueva Anna and Liebre case was a dispute between the Spanish Consul, as claimant, and the United States. The Spanish Consul claimed that two ships had been seized by American authorities in 1821 while they were on their way to Spain from Cuba. The Supreme Court held that the seizure of these vessels violated international law because it occurred without any legal justification or authority from either nation involved. Furthermore, since there was no evidence of wrongdoing on behalf of either party, both nations should be liable for damages incurred due to this wrongful act. As such, the court ordered compensation for all losses suffered by both parties as a result of this unlawful action taken against them.

In The Nueva Anna and Liebre case, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a Spanish consul had the right to claim ownership of two vessels that were captured by an American privateer during the War of 1812. The majority opinion held that since Spain was not a party in the war, its citizens could not be deprived of their property without due process. However, Justice Johnson dissented from this view and argued that under international law, all enemy ships are subject to capture regardless of who owns them. He further argued that even if Spain had been neutral in the conflict it would still have no legal basis for claiming these vessels as they were taken while sailing under false colors with hostile intent towards America. Therefore he concluded that there was no violation of due process when these ships were seized by an American privateer during wartime hostilities.