In the case of Vella v. Ford Motor Co., 1974, the plaintiff, a former employee of Ford Motor Company, sued for disability benefits under a collective bargaining agreement after he was diagnosed with an occupational disease. The district court ruled in favor of Ford and dismissed the suit on grounds that it fell within the exclusive jurisdiction of Michigan's Workmen Compensation Commission. However, upon appeal to Supreme Court by Vella citing violation of Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA), Section 301(a), which allows federal courts to hear disputes over labor contracts; Justice Thurgood Marshall delivered opinion reversing lower court’s decision stating that although state law may require resolution through administrative procedures first before resorting to judicial action, LMRA does not preclude federal jurisdiction over such cases involving interpretation or application of terms in collective bargaining agreements.

In the dissenting opinion for Vella v. Ford Motor Co., the justice argued that the majority's decision to reverse and remand was unnecessary because there was no dispute about material facts in this case, only a disagreement on how those facts should be interpreted under maritime law. The dissenting justice believed that it would have been more appropriate for the Supreme Court to affirm or reverse based on their interpretation of these undisputed facts rather than sending it back down to lower courts. They also disagreed with the majority's view that an injured seaman could recover maintenance and cure even after reaching maximum medical recovery if they were still disabled, arguing instead that such benefits should cease once maximum medical improvement is reached regardless of whether disability persists.