The U.S. Supreme Court case, The Servia (1892), revolved around a dispute over maritime law and the liability of ship owners for damages caused by their vessels. The steamship Servia collided with another vessel, the Nacoochee, off the coast of New Jersey in 1888 resulting in significant damage to both ships and loss of life on board the Nacoochee. A lower court ruled that both parties were at fault but assigned greater blame to the Servia due to its failure to follow established sailing rules which led directly to collision. On appeal, however, this decision was reversed by an appellate court which found only minor faults with actions taken by crew members aboard each ship prior to impact; it therefore held that neither party should be held liable for damages incurred as a result of accident. This ruling was subsequently appealed before Supreme Court where justices unanimously upheld original verdict assigning majority blame onto Servia's operators while also clarifying legal principles related specifically towards apportionment of liability within context of maritime collisions.

In the dissenting opinion for The Servia case, Justice Gray argued that the lower court's decision should be upheld. He disagreed with the majority's interpretation of maritime law and believed that a ship at sea has an obligation to assist another vessel in distress if it is safe to do so. In this particular case, he felt that The Servia had failed in its duty to help another ship which was sinking after they collided. According to him, even though The Servia itself was not responsible for causing the collision, it still had a responsibility under international maritime law to render assistance once aware of the other ship’s dire situation. Thus, he dissented from his colleagues who ruled otherwise.