Savings Bank v. Ward was a United States Supreme Court case that addressed the issue of whether a state court could enforce a contract that was made in violation of a state statute. The case involved a contract between the Savings Bank of the City of New York and William Ward, a resident of the state of New York. The contract was for the sale of a piece of real estate, and the contract stated that the sale was to be completed within one year. However, the New York statute at the time required that all real estate sales be completed within six months. The Supreme Court held that the state court could not enforce the contract, as it was in violation of the state statute. The Court reasoned that the state statute was a valid exercise of the state's police power, and that the state had the right to regulate the sale of real estate in order to protect the public interest. The Court also noted that the contract was not a valid contract, as it was in violation of the state statute. Therefore, the Court held that the state court could not enforce the contract.

Justice Field delivered the dissenting opinion in Savings Bank v. Ward, arguing that the majority had erred in its interpretation of a contract between two parties. He argued that while it was true that one party had not fulfilled their obligations under the contract, this did not mean they were absolved from all responsibility for damages caused by their failure to fulfill those obligations. Instead, Justice Field argued that both parties should be held responsible for any losses suffered as a result of either's breach of contract and thus each should bear an equal share of liability. Furthermore, he noted that if only one party was found liable then there would be no incentive for them to perform their contractual duties since they could simply ignore them without consequence or penalty. As such, Justice Field concluded his dissent by asserting that both parties must bear some degree of responsibility when it comes to breaches in contracts and thus neither can escape full liability regardless of who is at fault initially.