In the 1893 case Texas and Pacific Railway Company v. Johnson, the U.S Supreme Court ruled in favor of Johnson, a former employee who sued for damages after being injured on the job due to alleged negligence by his employer. The railway company argued that they were not liable as per federal law which stated that employees assumed certain risks when accepting their jobs. However, Justice Brewer delivered an opinion stating that this rule did not apply if it was proven that the employer had been negligent or failed to provide safe working conditions. In this case, evidence showed that there was a defect in machinery used by Johnson which caused his injury and hence he could claim compensation from his employers despite any inherent risk associated with railroad work.

In the dissenting opinion for Texas and Pacific Railway Company v. Johnson, it was argued that the court majority had erred in its interpretation of federal law regarding liability for railway accidents. The dissent held that under existing legislation, a railroad company could only be held liable if negligence on their part was proven to have directly caused an accident. In this case, there was no clear evidence of such negligence by the railway company; rather, it appeared that other factors may have contributed to or even primarily caused the incident in question. Therefore, according to this viewpoint, holding the railway company responsible would constitute a misapplication of federal law and set a dangerous precedent for future cases involving similar circumstances.