In the case of The Commercial Bank of Manchester v. Henry S. Buckner, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a bank could be held liable for damages caused by its negligence in failing to collect on an overdue note from one of its customers. The court found that while banks have a duty to exercise reasonable care and diligence when collecting notes, they are not responsible for losses resulting from their failure to do so unless it can be shown that such failure was due to gross negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the bank itself. Furthermore, even if there is evidence suggesting such conduct occurred, it must still be proven beyond a reasonable doubt before liability may attach. Ultimately, this decision established important precedent regarding how courts should view claims against banks involving negligent collection practices and set forth clear guidelines as to what constitutes sufficient proof in order for those claims succeed

Justice McLean delivered the dissenting opinion in this case. He argued that the Court should have held that Buckner was liable for his debt to Commercial Bank of Manchester, as he had signed a promissory note and accepted its terms. The majority opinion found otherwise, holding that because Buckner was not aware of all the facts surrounding his signing of the note, it could not be enforced against him. Justice McLean disagreed with this conclusion and stated that ignorance is no excuse when one has voluntarily entered into an agreement; if there are any doubts about what one is agreeing to then they must take steps to ensure they understand before entering into such an agreement. Furthermore, he argued that even if Buckner did not know all relevant details at time of signing, he still assumed responsibility by accepting delivery and payment on account from Commercial Bank after learning more information about their arrangement. Therefore, Justice McLean concluded that Buckner should be held responsible for paying back his debt according to terms agreed upon in original contract between parties.