In the case of Tuttle et al. v. Harris et al., 1935, the United States Supreme Court ruled on a dispute involving oil and gas leases in Oklahoma. The plaintiffs, who were lessors under these leases, claimed that they had been defrauded by their lessees through an alleged conspiracy to depress the price of oil and thereby reduce royalty payments due to them under their lease agreements. They sought damages for this alleged fraud as well as cancellation of the leases involved. The Supreme Court held that federal courts did not have jurisdiction over such cases because they essentially involved property rights which are governed by state law rather than federal law. It also found no evidence supporting claims of fraudulent conduct or conspiracy among defendants that would justify invoking federal jurisdiction based on diversity citizenship rules (i.e., when parties reside in different states). Therefore, it dismissed plaintiffs' suit for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. This decision underscored principles limiting scope and reach of federal court power vis-a-vis state courts concerning matters primarily within purview or competence of latter institutions like those dealing with real property rights.

In the dissenting opinion for Tuttle et al. v. Harris et al., it was argued that the majority's decision to uphold a state law prohibiting picketing and boycotting during labor disputes infringed upon workers' constitutional rights of free speech, assembly, and petition. The dissenters believed that peaceful picketing is an essential tool for workers in their struggle against employers, serving as a means of communication about labor conditions to both the public and other employees. They contended that this form of protest should be protected under the First Amendment unless it involves violence or intimidation tactics which could harm others or property. Furthermore, they expressed concern over giving states too much power to regulate industrial relations at the expense of individual liberties guaranteed by federal law.