Beall v. White was a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of whether a contract between two parties was valid. The case involved a contract between William Beall and William White, in which Beall agreed to pay White $1,000 for the purchase of a tract of land. White had previously sold the land to another party, and Beall argued that the contract was invalid because White had no right to sell the land. The Supreme Court held that the contract was valid, and that Beall was obligated to pay the $1,000. The Court reasoned that Beall had relied on White's representation that he had the right to sell the land, and that Beall had acted in good faith in entering into the contract. The Court also noted that Beall had taken possession of the land and had made improvements to it, and that he had been in possession of the land for several years. The Court concluded that Beall had acted in good faith and that the contract was valid. The Court held that Beall was obligated to pay the $1,000, and that White was entitled to receive the money. This case established the principle that a contract is valid even if one of the parties does not have the right to sell the property in question.

Justice Field delivered the dissenting opinion in Beall v. White, arguing that the majority's decision was not supported by precedent and would lead to an unjust result. He argued that a contract between two parties should be enforced according to its terms, regardless of whether it is fair or equitable. In this case, he noted that there had been no fraud or mistake on either side when they entered into their agreement; therefore, it should have been upheld as written. Furthermore, Justice Field argued that if one party were allowed to unilaterally modify a contract after entering into it without any legal justification for doing so then contracts could become meaningless and unenforceable in court. As such, he concluded that the lower court's ruling should have been affirmed instead of reversed by the Supreme Court majority opinion.