In Selden F. White v. The Vermont and Massachusetts Railroad Company, the Supreme Court of the United States heard a case regarding whether or not an individual was entitled to damages for injuries he sustained while riding on a train operated by the defendant railroad company. Plaintiff in error, Selden F. White, argued that he had been injured due to negligence on behalf of the defendant railroad company and sought compensation for his medical expenses as well as other losses suffered from his injury. The court ultimately found that Mr. White was indeed entitled to damages based upon evidence presented at trial which showed that there were numerous safety violations committed by employees of the defendant railroad company leading up to MrWhite's accident and subsequent injury; thus ruling in favor of plaintiff in error, Selden F. White

In Selden F. White v. The Vermont and Massachusetts Railroad Company, the dissenting opinion argued that the plaintiff was entitled to damages for his injury caused by a train operated by the defendant railroad company. The majority had ruled against him on grounds of contributory negligence, but Justice Nelson dissented from this ruling because he believed that there was no evidence in the record to support such a finding. He further noted that even if it could be established that Mr. White had been negligent in some way, it did not necessarily follow that he should be denied compensation for his injuries due to his own carelessness or lack of skill as an engineer; rather, any fault on his part should have only served to reduce whatever award might otherwise have been granted him under applicable law at the time of trial.