Charles M'Micken brought a case against Amos Webb, Aaron Smith, and Ira Smith to the Supreme Court of the United States. The dispute was over an agreement between M'Micken and the three defendants in which he agreed to pay them for their services as surveyors. According to M'Micken's complaint, he had paid all that was due under this contract but still owed money according to the defendants. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of M'Micken on grounds that there were no facts presented by either party that could prove any debt or obligation beyond what had already been paid by him. This ruling established precedent for future cases involving contracts where one party claims they are owed more than has been previously agreed upon without providing evidence supporting such a claim.

In Charles M'Micken v. Amos Webb, Aaron Smith, and Ira Smith, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a contract between two parties could be enforced when one of them had died before it was fully executed. The majority opinion held that contracts are not enforceable after death because they cannot be performed by either party. However, Justice McLean dissented from this ruling on the grounds that contracts should remain binding even if one of the parties has passed away as long as there is evidence that both sides intended to enter into an agreement prior to their deaths. He argued that enforcing such agreements would encourage people to fulfill their obligations in good faith and promote fairness in business dealings. Furthermore, he noted that allowing for posthumous enforcement of contracts would prevent fraud or other wrongful acts which might otherwise occur due to lack of accountability after death.