In the case of Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company v. Higdon, doing business under the name of Crescent Coal Company in 1913, the Supreme Court ruled on a dispute involving freight rates for coal transportation. The Crescent Coal Company had sued the railroad company for charging higher rates than those set by an agreement between both parties and sought to recover overcharges. The lower courts sided with Crescent Coal, but upon appeal to the Supreme Court, it was determined that while there was indeed an agreed-upon rate between both companies, this did not exempt them from changes made by state legislation or regulatory bodies such as Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). Therefore, when ICC increased freight rates across all railroads due to economic conditions at that time - which led to L&N Railroad increasing their charges - they were within their rights and obligations under law despite any prior agreements with individual customers like Crescent Coal Co. Henceforth, Louisville & Nashville Railroad's actions were deemed lawful and compliant with federal regulations governing interstate commerce.

The dissenting opinion in the case of Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company v. Higdon argued that the majority's decision was incorrect because it failed to consider the full implications of its ruling on interstate commerce. The dissenting justices believed that by allowing a state law to regulate rates for intrastate transportation, even when such transportation is part of an interstate journey, would disrupt and potentially harm national trade. They contended that this interpretation could lead to inconsistent regulations across states, creating confusion and inefficiency for businesses involved in interstate commerce. Furthermore, they expressed concern about potential conflicts between federal and state laws regarding rate regulation if each state were allowed to set their own rules independently from one another. Therefore, they disagreed with the majority's view that Kentucky had jurisdiction over setting rates for a portion of an interstate shipment within its borders.