Buel v. Van Ness was a Supreme Court case that established the principle of equitable conversion in real estate transactions. The plaintiff, Buel, had entered into an agreement with the defendant, Van Ness, to purchase certain land for $4200 and paid him a deposit of $1000 as earnest money. Before title could be transferred to Buel however, he became insolvent and his creditors sought to attach the property before it was conveyed by Van Ness. The court held that once an agreement is made between two parties for the sale of real estate and earnest money has been exchanged then legal title passes from seller to buyer even though no deed or other formal transfer document has taken place yet; this is known as equitable conversion. This decision set forth important principles regarding how courts should treat such agreements when one party becomes insolvent prior to completion of conveyance documents being executed

In Buel v. Van Ness, the Supreme Court was tasked with deciding whether a deed of trust created by an individual could be enforced against his creditors. The majority opinion held that it could not, as such trusts were considered to be fraudulent and contrary to public policy. However, in dissent Justice Johnson argued that the deed should have been upheld since it had been executed before any debts were incurred and thus did not constitute fraud or violate public policy. He further noted that if the deed had been invalidated then individuals would no longer have faith in contracts they entered into prior to incurring debt and this would lead to great uncertainty in commerce which is detrimental for society at large.