In the 1958 case Southwestern Sugar & Molasses Co., Inc. v. River Terminals Corp., the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of River Terminals Corp, affirming a lower court's decision that it was not liable for damages to Southwestern Sugar & Molasses Co.'s cargo during unloading operations at its terminal facilities on the Mississippi River. The sugar company had sued for $75,000 in damages after some of its molasses leaked from storage tanks due to alleged negligence by River Terminals' employees while they were discharging the cargo from vessels into these tanks. However, both courts found that an indemnity clause within their contract protected River Terminal against such claims and held that this provision did not violate public policy or federal maritime law as argued by Southwestern Sugar & Molasses Co.

The dissenting opinion in the case of Southwestern Sugar & Molasses Co., Inc. v. River Terminals Corp. argued that the majority's decision was inconsistent with previous rulings and could potentially disrupt commercial practices across a wide range of industries. The dissent contended that, under existing law, a shipper who has paid for transportation services should be entitled to recover damages if those services are not provided as agreed upon - regardless of whether or not they have suffered any physical loss or damage to their goods. They also expressed concern about the potential implications for other types of contracts where one party pays in advance for services yet to be rendered by another party, such as insurance policies or subscriptions to periodicals.