The Vermilya-Brown Co., Inc. v. Connell et al., 1948, was a U.S Supreme Court case that revolved around the jurisdiction of U.S law over American territories abroad. The dispute began when an employee of the Vermilya-Brown Company died in Bermuda, where the company had been contracted by the United States to construct military bases during World War II. The widow filed for worker's compensation under New York State law since both she and her husband were residents there before his assignment overseas. However, it was contested whether or not New York laws applied as Bermuda is outside its territorial jurisdiction and at that time was leased from Britain by America for defense purposes only without sovereignty rights transferred to America. In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled against Mrs Connell stating that although Congress has power over such places acquired for federal uses within state limits; this does not extend to similar acquisitions in foreign countries unless expressly extended by Congress which wasn't done here thus making local Bermudian laws applicable instead.

In the dissenting opinion for Vermilya-Brown Co., Inc. et al. v. Connell et al., Justice Frankfurter disagreed with the majority's decision that American law applied to a U.S.-owned military base in Bermuda, despite it being on leased land from Britain. He argued that sovereignty over territory is determined by political and not judicial processes, and thus should be decided by international diplomacy rather than domestic courts. Furthermore, he contended that applying U.S laws abroad could lead to conflicts with foreign nations as well as inconsistencies within our own legal system due to differing interpretations of those laws overseas versus domestically.