Lawsuit
From Oakland, the Alta Telegraph Company laid a cable under San Francisco Bay to San Francisco, but the cable failed to work. An alternate route was then used, extending around the southern end of the bay via San Jose. This route, however, was already used by the competing California State Telegraph Company under a special act of the State of California. The California State Telegraph Company successfully sued the Alta Telegraph Company for infringing on what they considered a monopoly grant. The suit was upheld by the California Supreme Court.
Read more about this topic: Alta Telegraph Company