In Great Western Insurance Company v. United States, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether the United States was liable for damages caused by a fire that occurred on a government-owned property. The fire had been caused by a spark from a locomotive owned by the United States. The insurance company had issued a policy to the owner of the property, covering the property against fire damage. The Supreme Court held that the United States was liable for the damages caused by the fire. The Court reasoned that the United States was liable because it had a duty to exercise reasonable care in the operation of its locomotive, and it had failed to do so. The Court also held that the insurance company was not liable for the damages, as the policy did not cover damage caused by the United States. The Court's decision established that the United States is liable for damages caused by its negligence, even when the damages are not covered by an insurance policy. This decision has been cited in numerous cases since then, and it has been used to establish the principle that the United States is liable for damages caused by its negligence.

In the case of Great Western Insurance Company v. United States, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether or not a tax imposed by Congress on insurance companies was constitutional. The majority opinion held that it was indeed constitutional and within Congress's power to impose such taxes. However, Justice Field dissented from this ruling, arguing that the tax in question violated both due process and equal protection clauses of the Constitution as well as principles established in prior cases regarding taxation powers granted to Congress under Article I Section 8 Clause 1 of the Constitution. He argued that since there were no differences between insurance companies operating domestically and those operating abroad, they should be treated equally when it comes to taxation; thus he concluded that imposing different taxes on them based solely upon their location constituted an unconstitutional discrimination against foreign insurers which could not be justified by any reasonable distinction between domestic and foreign operations.