United States v. Corliss Steam-Engine Company was a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of patent infringement. The case involved the Corliss Steam-Engine Company, which had been accused of infringing on the patent of another company, the American Steam-Engine Company. The Corliss Steam-Engine Company argued that the patent was invalid because it was not novel and that the patent was not infringed upon. The Supreme Court held that the patent was valid and that the Corliss Steam-Engine Company had infringed upon it. The Court found that the patent was novel and that the Corliss Steam-Engine Company had copied the design of the American Steam-Engine Company's patent. The Court also held that the Corliss Steam-Engine Company had not taken reasonable steps to avoid infringing on the patent. The Court's decision established that patent infringement is a serious offense and that companies must take reasonable steps to avoid infringing on the patents of others. The decision also established that patents must be novel in order to be valid. This case set a precedent for future patent infringement cases and established the importance of protecting intellectual property.

In United States v. Corliss Steam-Engine Company, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a patentee had exclusive rights to use their patented invention in any state or territory of the United States. The majority opinion held that Congress did not have the power to grant such an expansive right and thus denied it to patentees. Justice Field dissented from this ruling, arguing that Congress has full authority under Article I of the Constitution to pass laws granting exclusive rights for inventions within all states and territories of the Union. He argued further that since patents are granted by federal law, they should be respected as having equal force throughout all parts of America regardless if they were issued before or after a particular state's admission into union. Thus he concluded that patentees should have exclusive control over their inventions in every part of America so long as those patents remain valid according to federal law.