Logan v. Patrick was a case heard by the United States Supreme Court in 1809. The dispute arose when William Logan, an attorney from Pennsylvania, sued James Patrick for failing to pay him $1,000 as compensation for legal services rendered. Logan argued that he had provided legal advice and assistance to Patrick on several occasions over the course of two years and that he was entitled to payment under their agreement. However, Patrick refused to pay claiming that no contract existed between them or any other form of obligation requiring him to do so. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of Logan finding there was sufficient evidence presented at trial demonstrating a valid contract between the parties which required payment from Patrick for services rendered by Logan as his lawyer.

In Logan v. Patrick, Chief Justice John Marshall delivered a dissenting opinion in which he argued that the Court should not have dismissed the case without hearing it on its merits. He noted that while there was no dispute as to whether or not a contract existed between the parties, there were questions of fact regarding how much money had been paid and what services had been rendered under said contract. As such, Marshall believed that these issues could only be resolved by allowing both sides to present their evidence before a jury so they could make an informed decision about who was entitled to damages and for what amount. Furthermore, he contended that if this issue were left unresolved then it would set an unfortunate precedent whereby contracts could be broken with impunity since one party would never know how much compensation they might receive from any breach of agreement. In conclusion, Marshall felt strongly that justice required all relevant facts be heard before any judgment is made in order for each side's rights to be fully protected under law.