In the 1909 case of Southern Railway Company v. Josephine King, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Mrs. King, who had sued for damages after her husband was killed while working on a railway construction project managed by Southern Railway Company. The court found that under Georgia law and common-law principles, an employer is liable for injuries caused to employees due to negligence or failure to provide safe working conditions. The company argued it should not be held responsible because Mr. King's death resulted from his own carelessness and he assumed risk when accepting employment with them; however, this argument was rejected by the court as they concluded that employers cannot absolve themselves from liability through such defenses if their negligence contributed to unsafe work environments leading to employee injury or death.

In the dissenting opinion for Southern Railway Company v. Josephine King, Justice Moody argued that the majority's decision to hold a railroad company liable for damages caused by an employee was unjustified and set a dangerous precedent. He contended that while employers should be held accountable for their own negligence or misconduct, they should not be automatically responsible for any harm caused by their employees' actions unless it can be proven that they failed in their duty of supervision or selection. In this case, he believed there was no evidence to suggest such failure on part of the railway company. Furthermore, he warned against expanding employer liability too broadly as it could lead to excessive litigation and potentially cripple industries vital to economic growth and development.