In the case of Alabama Great Southern Railway Company v. Thompson in 1905, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of the railway company. The plaintiff, Thompson, had sued for damages after a train accident caused by alleged negligence on part of the railway company's employees resulted in his injury. However, under Alabama state law at that time (the "fellow servant rule"), an employer was not liable for injuries to an employee caused by another employee's negligence while both were engaged in common service to their employer. The court held that this rule applied even if one worker was subordinate to another or if they worked different shifts as long as they were employed together towards accomplishing a common purpose - running and maintaining trains safely and efficiently - which was found true here between Thompson and those whose negligence allegedly led to his injury.

In the dissenting opinion for Alabama Great Southern Railway Company v. Thompson, it was argued that the majority's decision to hold a corporation liable for damages caused by an employee who acted outside of his scope of employment was incorrect. The dissenting justices believed this ruling expanded corporate liability beyond its traditional boundaries and contradicted established legal principles. They contended that a corporation should only be held responsible for actions committed by employees within their assigned duties or with explicit authorization from superiors. In this case, they asserted, there was no evidence suggesting that the railway company had authorized or condoned the conductor's violent behavior towards Thompson; thus, holding them accountable would set a dangerous precedent in tort law where corporations could be unfairly punished for unforeseeable misconducts of their employees.