Clark v. United States (95 U.S. 539)/Dissent Miller

by Samuel Freeman Miller

United States Supreme Court

95 U.S. 539

Clark  v.  United States

MR. JUSTICE MILLER, with whom concurred MR. JUSTICE FIELD and MR. JUSTICE HUNT, dissenting.

While I agree to the reversal of the judgment in this case, and to so much of the opinion as gives compensation for the use of the vessel before she was destroyed, I cannot agree to the more important part of the opinion, which holds the contract void because it was not reduced to writing.

The act of June 2, 1862, which is interpreted by the court to be a statute of frauds, making all contracts of the Departments of War, Navy, and Interior void which are not reduced to writing and signed by the parties, is not, in my judgment, properly construed.

It cannot be doubted that it was conpetent for Congress to impose upon the officers of these departments the duty of having all their contracts made in writing and filed in the proper office, without making absolutely void a parol contract made on a fair consideration and within the scope of their authority. In other words, Congress had a right to give such directions to those officers as would secure a statement in writing of the contract itself, for the use of the proper officers of the government, without making it obligatory on the individual contracting with the government, so that his contract, otherwise valid, would be void for want of that formality.

Looking at sect. 1 of the statute, as it is cited in the opinion of the court, it will be found wanting in the essential words of all known statutes of fraud.

There is no declaration that a parol contract shall be void, or that it shall not be enforced, or that no suit may be sustained on it.

There is no language in it addressed to the party contracting with the government. It is obvious that the primary purpose of the statute-in my judgment, the only one-is to secure authentic and perfect statements of such contracts, and of the proposals, advertisements, bids, and all the papers relating to them, to be filed in an office at Washington, where they can be inspected by any one having an interest, and especially by those superior officers whose approval or rejection may affect their validity. The statute seems in terms to apply to contracts in existence when it was passed as well as to those to be made in future. Returns of all contracts are to be made and filed in the office created for that purpose, within thirty days, together with bids, advertisements, &c.

The second section requires the officer making these returns to verify them by affidavit; and the object of this undoubtedly was to have evidence on which the government could rely, of the precise nature of the contract, and of the circumstances under which it was made.

The third section imposes a penalty on the officer for failing to make returns to the proper office, as required by the statute, by a fine; but no penalty for making a contract not in writing and signed by the parties.

In short, I cannot conceive, looking to the whole statute, that Congress intended any thing more than to regulate the conduct of its own officers, in compelling them to furnish all the evidence in their power of the contract and the circumstances attending its negotiation; and it seems to me to be going a long way to hold that it was the purpose to establish an entirely new rule as to the validity of contracts, at variance with any law heretofore known in this country, or, perhaps, any other.

If that was the purpose, it is hard to see why contracts in the three departments mentioned are selected for the operation of the rule, while the far more numerous and equally important contracts of the Post Office, the Attorney-General's Office, the Treasury and the State Departments are left to be controlled by the law as it stood before.

If there is any branch of the public service where contracts must often be made speedily, and without time to reduce the contract to writing, it is in that of the army. Sudden occasions for supplies, for the occupation of buildings, for the transportation of food and munitions of war, are constantly arising, and in many of them it is impossible to do more than demand what is wanted, and agree to pay what it is worth. Did Congress intend to say that the patriotic citizen, who said 'take of mine what is necessary,' is to lose his property for want of a written contract, or be remitted to the delays of an act of Congress?

It seems to me that if Congress had been intending to enact a statute of frauds, they would have made some limitation of its operation to cases of future delivery of property or future performance of service, and would not have passed a statute like this, which, if its effect is such as the court declares, renders void all contracts for compensation for the thousand small services and supplies which are daily needed by those in the employment of the government for its use.

I think the construction given by the court unwarranted and unfortunate, and of sufficient importance to record my dissent from it.

Notes