In the 1980 case of Scindia Steam Navigation Co., Ltd. v. De Los Santos, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed issues related to maritime law and liability for injuries sustained by longshoremen while loading or unloading a vessel. The plaintiff, De Los Santos, was injured during such operations on a ship owned by Scindia Steam Navigation Company (Scindia). He sued under section 905(b) of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA), which allows longshoremen to sue vessel owners for negligence causing injury. The court held that once cargo operations have begun, a shipowner is not generally responsible for supervising ongoing work conditions unless it has reason to know about an unsafe condition on its ship that cannot be corrected by reasonable care from the stevedore (the company hired to load/unload cargo). However, if there are clear indications that the stevedore’s operation is inadequate or unsafe then they may be liable. This ruling clarified how courts should apply Section 905(b) in determining whether a shipowner can be held liable for injuries suffered by longshoreman during loading/unloading activities.

In the dissenting opinion for Scindia Steam Navigation Co., Ltd. v. De Los Santos, Justice Brennan disagreed with the majority's interpretation of Section 5(b) of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA). He argued that this section imposes a duty on shipowners to ensure that their vessels are safe for longshoremen to work on them throughout loading or unloading operations, not just at turnover time as suggested by the majority. According to him, such an interpretation is more consistent with both legislative intent and prior court decisions interpreting similar statutory provisions in other contexts. Furthermore, he contended that limiting liability only to conditions existing at turnover would undermine Congress’s goal of encouraging safety because it would allow vessel owners who know about dangerous conditions developing during cargo operations but do nothing about them until after injury occurs to escape liability entirely.