The Alexander, Pickett, Master was a case heard by the United States Supreme Court in 1814. The dispute arose from a contract between two parties for the sale of goods and services on board an American vessel called the Alexander. The seller argued that they were entitled to payment for their goods and services as per their agreement with the buyer. However, when it came time to pay up, the buyer refused to do so claiming that he had already paid all outstanding debts owed under his contract with them. In response, the seller filed suit against him in federal court seeking damages for breach of contract. After hearing arguments from both sides, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in favor of the plaintiff stating that since there was no evidence presented proving otherwise; they were entitled to receive payment according to their agreement with him. This ruling established important precedent regarding contracts made at sea which still stands today - if one party fails to fulfill its obligations under a contractual agreement then they are liable for any resulting losses incurred by another party due thereto

In the case of The Alexander, Pickett, Master (1814), Justice Story delivered a dissenting opinion. He argued that it was not necessary to decide whether or not the master had authority to bind his owners in this particular instance because he believed that there were other grounds on which the court could have decided the case. Specifically, he argued that even if it was assumed that no such authority existed, then under maritime law and custom an agreement made by a master with respect to repairs should be binding upon both parties unless there is some evidence of fraud or collusion between them. In this case, Justice Story noted there was no evidence of either fraud or collusion and thus concluded that any agreement entered into by the master should be enforced as valid according to maritime law and custom.