The U.S. Supreme Court case Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority et al., 2001, addressed the issue of whether a federal agency has jurisdiction over state entities in administrative adjudicatory proceedings. The dispute began when a cruise line filed a complaint with the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) against the South Carolina State Ports Authority for denying it access to its berths while allowing other cruise lines to dock there, alleging this was discriminatory and violated Shipping Act regulations. The FMC ruled that they had authority over such disputes involving state entities under their mandate from Congress. However, on appeal, the Supreme Court reversed this decision by ruling in favor of the South Carolina State Ports Authority. It held that states have sovereign immunity from private lawsuits in federal agencies' adjudicative proceedings unless explicitly waived or abrogated by Congress - which hadn't occurred here as per majority opinion led by Justice Clarence Thomas. This landmark decision reinforced principles of federalism and state sovereignty within administrative law contexts.

In the dissenting opinion for Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority, Justice Breyer argued that the majority's decision to prevent federal agencies from adjudicating private complaints against state entities was inconsistent with past precedent and could potentially disrupt a wide range of administrative proceedings. He pointed out that historically, states have been subject to federal regulation in many areas and there is no reason why this should not extend to maritime matters. Furthermore, he contended that allowing such complaints does not violate state sovereignty as it does not involve coercive action by one government against another but rather provides a forum for resolving disputes between private parties and states. The dissent also expressed concern about the potential impact on other regulatory schemes involving federal-state relations if similar reasoning were applied elsewhere.