The U.S. Supreme Court case Interstate Commerce Commission v. Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Company in 1910 revolved around the issue of whether a railroad company could be forced to provide coal cars for its own mines before fulfilling orders from independent operators. The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) had ordered the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Company to stop giving preferential treatment to its own coal mines by supplying them with more railcars than it provided to independent mining companies. The railroad company argued that this was not discriminatory as they were simply prioritizing their own business operations and needs over those of other businesses. However, the Supreme Court ruled against the railroad company stating that such practices were indeed discriminatory under federal law which required equal treatment for all shippers without favoritism or preference being given based on ownership or affiliation with a particular shipper's goods being transported by railroads engaged in interstate commerce.

In the dissenting opinion for the case of Interstate Commerce Commission v. Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Company, Justice Harlan argued that the majority's decision was a misinterpretation of Congress' intent in passing the Hepburn Act. He contended that it was not meant to give railroads an absolute right to charge whatever they deemed reasonable but instead intended to empower the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) with authority over rate-setting. The ICC should have been able to intervene when rates were unjust or unreasonable and set maximum limits if necessary. In his view, this power would protect consumers from potential abuses by railroad companies who might otherwise exploit their monopoly position in certain markets. By failing to uphold this principle, he believed that Court had effectively undermined Congressional efforts at regulation and left consumers vulnerable.