In County of Morgan v. Allen, the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to decide whether a county could be held liable for damages caused by a defective bridge. The plaintiff, Allen, was injured when his horse and wagon fell through a bridge that had been built by the county. Allen sued the county for damages, arguing that the county was liable for the defective bridge. The Supreme Court held that the county was liable for the damages caused by the defective bridge. The Court reasoned that the county had a duty to maintain the bridge in a safe condition, and that it had breached that duty by failing to repair the bridge. The Court also noted that the county had received money from the state to repair the bridge, but had failed to do so. As a result, the Court held that the county was liable for the damages caused by the defective bridge. In conclusion, the Supreme Court held that the county was liable for the damages caused by the defective bridge. The Court reasoned that the county had a duty to maintain the bridge in a safe condition, and that it had breached that duty by failing to repair the bridge. The Court also noted that the county had received money from the state to repair the bridge, but had failed to do so. As a result, the Court held that the county was liable for the damages caused by the defective bridge.

In the case of County of Morgan v. Allen, Justice Field delivered a dissenting opinion in which he argued that the majority's decision was contrary to established precedent and would lead to an unjust result. He noted that under prior decisions by the Supreme Court, when a party has been wrongfully deprived of property or rights due to illegal action taken by another party, they are entitled to compensation for their losses regardless of whether those losses were foreseeable at the time such actions were taken. In this case, he argued that since it was clear from existing law that Allen had been wrongfully deprived of his property as a result of unlawful acts committed by Morgan County officials, he should be compensated for his loss even though it may not have been foreseeable at the time those acts occurred. Furthermore, Justice Field asserted that if Morgan County is allowed off without any liability in this situation then similar cases could arise where other parties might also escape responsibility despite having acted unlawfully and thus creating an unjust system whereby some individuals can benefit from their own wrongdoing while others suffer with no recourse available to them.