Trustees Of Dartmouth College v. Woodward

17 U.S. (Wheat.) 518 (1819)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

Ps applied to the King of England for a charter to incorporate Dartmouth College as a religious and literary institution. The King granted it in 1769. Ps were to fund and then govern the college and replace any vacancies which may be created in their own body. Things were great until 1816 when New Hampshire passed a law to amend the charter and enlarge and improve the corporation of Dartmouth College. The state did this to get the deposed College's president reinstated. The Act increased the number of trustees to twenty-one, gives the appointment of the additional members to the executive of the State, and creates a board of overseers, with the power to inspect and control the most important acts of the trustees. This board consists of twenty-five persons. The president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, of New Hampshire, and the governor and lieutenant governor of Vermont, for the time being, are to be members ex officio. The board is to be completed by the governor and council of New Hampshire, who are also empowered to fill all vacancies which may occur. The majority of the trustees, Ps, have refused to accept this amended charter, and have brought this suit for the corporate property, which is in possession of a person holding by virtue of the acts which have been stated. Woodward (D) is Dartmouth’s secretary and treasurer. Ps sought to recover the corporate property. Ps made their claim against D under the Contracts Clause of Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution. The state court ruled for D. Ps appealed.