In School District v. Insurance Company, the Supreme Court of the United States was asked to decide whether a school district was entitled to recover damages from an insurance company for a fire that destroyed a school building. The school district had purchased a fire insurance policy from the insurance company, but the policy did not cover the full value of the building. The school district argued that the insurance company had failed to properly inform them of the policy's limitations, and that they should be able to recover the full value of the building. The Supreme Court held that the school district was not entitled to recover the full value of the building. The Court found that the insurance company had adequately informed the school district of the policy's limitations, and that the school district had failed to read the policy carefully. The Court also found that the school district had failed to take reasonable steps to protect the building from fire, and that the insurance company was not liable for the school district's negligence. The Court concluded that the school district was only entitled to recover the amount of the policy, and not the full value of the building.

Justice Field delivered the dissenting opinion in School District v. Insurance Company, arguing that the majority's decision was contrary to established law and precedent. He argued that a school district is not an entity capable of entering into contracts or being held liable for damages under existing laws; therefore, it cannot be sued by an insurance company for breach of contract. Furthermore, he noted that even if the school district had been found to have breached its contractual obligations with respect to fire insurance policies issued by the insurer, such a finding would not entitle them to recover any damages from the insurer since they were never parties to those contracts in the first place. Finally, Justice Field concluded his dissent by noting that while there may be some public policy considerations which could support allowing recovery against a school district in this case, these should be left up to legislative bodies rather than courts as it is their prerogative alone decide when and how public funds are spent.