Boyce and Henry, plaintiffs in error, were suing Timothy Edwards, defendant in error. The case arose out of a dispute over the ownership of certain slaves that had been sold by Boyce and Henry to Edwards. At issue was whether or not the sale was valid under Virginia law at the time. The Supreme Court held that it was invalid because there had been no delivery of possession from Boyce and Henry to Edwards as required by Virginia law for such sales to be legally binding. As a result, they ruled that Boyce and Henry retained title to the slaves despite having received payment from Edwards for them. This ruling established an important precedent with regards to slave ownership laws in Virginia which would remain applicable until slavery itself became illegal following the Civil War some thirty years later.

In Boyce and Henry v. Timothy Edwards, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a contract between two parties could be enforced if it had been made without consideration. The majority opinion held that the contract in question was not enforceable because there had been no exchange of value or other consideration for its formation. However, Justice Thompson dissented from this decision on the grounds that contracts should be upheld when they are based upon good faith and mutual trust between parties even if no actual consideration has been exchanged. He argued that such agreements were just as binding as those which involved some form of tangible benefit being given by one party to another in return for their agreement to enter into a contractual relationship. Furthermore, he stated that courts should not interfere with private arrangements unless there is clear evidence of fraud or bad faith on either side; otherwise, individuals should have freedom to make whatever bargains they choose without fear of having them overturned by judicial decree later down the line.