In the 1908 case of Keller v. United States, the Supreme Court addressed an issue regarding customs duties on sugar imports. The plaintiff, a sugar importer named Keller, argued that he was overcharged by U.S. Customs for his imported raw sugars due to incorrect classification under the Tariff Act of 1897. The government classified his import as "sugar above No.16 Dutch standard in color" which attracted higher duty rates while Keller insisted it should be categorized as "sugar not above No.16 Dutch standard in color", attracting lower rates. The court ruled against Keller stating that despite potential errors made during testing procedures for determining sugar's grade (Dutch Standard), there was no evidence proving intentional misconduct or fraud from customs officials and hence they were acting within their authority granted by law when assessing duties based on their judgment. This decision upheld broad discretionary powers given to administrative agencies like U.S Customs Service and emphasized that courts would not interfere with such decisions unless clear proof of abuse or violation is presented.

In the dissenting opinion for Keller v. United States, Justice Harlan argued that the majority's decision was a misinterpretation of the law and an overreach of federal power. He contended that Congress did not have authority to regulate purely local matters under its commerce powers, as it had done in this case by prohibiting lottery tickets' transportation across state lines. Harlan believed such regulation should be left to individual states rather than being controlled federally. Furthermore, he disagreed with the majority's view that lottery tickets were "articles of commerce," arguing instead they were merely pieces of paper without intrinsic value or use beyond representing a chance at winning money or prizes. Thus, according to him, their transport could not constitute interstate commerce subject to federal regulation.