Alexander Dennistoun, John Dennistoun, William Myline and William Wood were partners in a business known as A. Dennistoun and Co. They brought suit against Roger Stewart for breach of contract. The plaintiffs alleged that they had entered into an agreement with the defendant to purchase certain goods from him at a fixed price but he refused to deliver them after being paid in full. The Supreme Court found in favor of the plaintiffs, ruling that the defendant was liable for damages due to his failure to fulfill his contractual obligations. Furthermore, it held that any subsequent contracts between parties must be based on good faith and fair dealing or else they will not be enforced by law. This case serves as an important reminder of how essential it is for all parties involved in commercial transactions to adhere strictly to their agreements so as not avoid costly legal disputes down the line

In Alexander Dennistoun, et al. v. Roger Stewart, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a contract between two parties that had been partially performed by one of them could be enforced against the other party who had not yet fulfilled their obligations under it. The majority opinion held that such contracts were enforceable and granted judgment in favor of the plaintiffs; however, Justice McLean dissented from this decision on the grounds that there was no consideration for either party's promise and thus no valid contract existed between them. He argued that since both parties had only partially performed their respective promises at the time they entered into agreement with each other, neither side should be allowed to recover damages or obtain any benefit from it as a result of its partial performance alone.