In the United States v. California Eastern Line, Inc., 1954 case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the government regarding a dispute over shipping charges for military cargo during World War II. The government had contracted with California Eastern Line to transport war materials across the Pacific Ocean at a fixed rate per ton under an agreement that also included "usual terms and conditions." After delivery, however, California Eastern Line billed additional charges based on customary practices within commercial shipping which were not explicitly stated in their contract with the government. The court held that these extra fees were not justified as they weren't expressly agreed upon by both parties in their contract or clearly implied from its language or nature of transaction involved. Therefore, it was decided that such common trade practices could not be read into this specific governmental contract unless specifically provided for.

In the dissenting opinion for United States et al. v. California Eastern Line, Inc., it was argued that the majority's decision to hold a private shipping company liable for damages caused by government-owned cargo during World War II was incorrect and unfair. The dissenting justices believed that the U.S Government should bear responsibility as they were in control of both the ship and its cargo at all times due to war circumstances, not California Eastern Line, Inc. They pointed out that under normal conditions, a carrier would be responsible for such damage but these were extraordinary circumstances where typical rules did not apply. Furthermore, they emphasized on an existing law which states that when goods are damaged while being transported by sea under unusual or emergency situations like war time operations; liability falls upon those who had actual control over them rather than their legal owners or carriers.