In the United States v. Florida case of 1975, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the federal government over a dispute regarding offshore boundaries and rights to underwater lands along Florida's Gulf Coast. The State of Florida claimed that it had jurisdiction up to three marine leagues (approximately nine nautical miles) from its coastline based on historical Spanish law at the time when Spain ceded Florida to America in 1821. However, this claim was contested by the Federal Government which argued for a boundary limit of only three geographical miles as per international law norms and previous court rulings related to other states' coastal claims. The Supreme Court held that while historic circumstances could sometimes justify deviations from standard rules, there were no compelling reasons in this case for treating Florida differently than other states whose submerged land rights extended only three geographic miles seaward from their coastlines under domestic laws or international conventions recognized by Congress. Thus, rejecting Florida’s argument about special entitlements due to its Spanish colonial history, they affirmed that all U.S states have equal sovereign authority within their respective territorial limits unless specifically provided otherwise by Congress.

The dissenting opinion in the case of United States v. Florida, 1975, argued that the majority's decision to award submerged lands to the federal government was inconsistent with previous rulings and principles of state sovereignty. The dissenters believed that when a state is admitted into the Union on equal footing with other states, it should have control over its territorial waters and submerged lands. They also disagreed with how the majority interpreted historical documents and treaties related to Florida's boundaries at admission. Furthermore, they contended that even if there were ambiguities about these boundaries at admission time, any reasonable doubts should be resolved in favor of state ownership due to principles of federalism and respect for state sovereignty.