In the United States v. McClure, Administratrix case of 1938, the Supreme Court ruled on a dispute over inheritance tax law. The decedent was a resident of Pennsylvania but had bonds stored in safe deposit boxes in New Jersey at the time of his death. According to Pennsylvania state law, these bonds were not subject to inheritance tax because they were physically located outside of the state when he died. However, federal authorities argued that since the decedent was domiciled in Pennsylvania and had control over these assets regardless of their physical location, they should be included as part of his gross estate for federal taxation purposes under Revenue Act provisions. The court sided with federal authorities and held that intangible personal property such as stocks or bonds is considered part of an individual's gross estate for taxation purposes if it is within their possession or control at time-of-death irrespective its physical location. This ruling clarified how domicile impacts taxable estates under U.S Federal Law.

In the dissenting opinion for United States v. McClure, it was argued that the majority's interpretation of Section 23(c) of the Revenue Act of 1928 was incorrect. The dissenting justices believed that this section should be interpreted to allow deductions from gross income for losses sustained during a taxable year and not compensated by insurance or otherwise. They disagreed with the majority's view that only those losses which were directly connected with a trade or business could be deducted under this provision. According to them, such an interpretation would exclude all personal casualty losses from deduction, contrary to what they believe is Congress' intent in enacting this law - providing relief for taxpayers who have suffered significant financial loss due to circumstances beyond their control.