In the 1902 case of Turpin v. Lemon, the United States Supreme Court dealt with a dispute over land ownership in Oklahoma. The plaintiff, Turpin, claimed that he had obtained rightful ownership of certain lands through an act passed by Congress known as the Kickapoo Act. This legislation allowed for allotment and distribution of lands to members of the Kickapoo Tribe and their descendants. However, Lemon contested this claim on grounds that he was entitled to these lands under another Congressional act called the Homestead Act which permitted any American citizen to claim up to 160 acres of public land if they lived on it and improved it for at least five years. The court ruled in favor of Lemon stating that while both acts were valid laws enacted by Congress; priority should be given to those who first occupied or improved upon such lands - principles embodied within common law property rights doctrine often referred as "first in time is first in right". Therefore since Lemon's claims predated those made under provisions set out by Kickapoo Act his entitlements were upheld.

In the dissenting opinion for Turpin v. Lemon, Justice Harlan disagreed with the majority's decision to uphold a Louisiana law that allowed only white people to serve on juries. He argued that this policy violated both the Fourteenth Amendment, which guarantees equal protection under the law, and the Fifteenth Amendment, which prohibits racial discrimination in voting rights (including jury service). Justice Harlan contended that these amendments were designed specifically to protect African Americans from such discriminatory practices. He also pointed out inconsistencies in previous court decisions regarding race-based jury selection policies and warned against setting a dangerous precedent of upholding racially discriminatory laws.