This US Supreme Court case involves four plaintiffs in error, John Stuart, Joseph Stuart, James Stuart and William H. Scott who are suing Hugh Maxwell. The Stuarts were the owners of a tract of land located in Illinois which they had leased to Maxwell for a period of five years with an option to renew the lease at the end of that time. When their lease expired, however, Maxwell refused to vacate the property despite being given notice by them several times prior to expiration date. In response, they filed suit against him seeking damages for his refusal as well as possession of their land back from him. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of the Stuarts and ordered that he pay them $2 per acre for each year he remained on their property after expiration date plus all costs associated with bringing this action before court including attorney fees and other expenses incurred during litigation process.

In the case of John Stuart, Joseph Stuart, James Stuart and William H. Scott v Hugh Maxwell, the dissenting opinion was that the plaintiffs had a valid claim to ownership of certain lands in Illinois which were sold by their father's administrator without proper authority. The majority opinion held that since there was no proof presented as to who owned these lands prior to their sale by the administrator, they could not be recovered from Maxwell who purchased them at auction. However, Justice McLean argued that this decision failed to take into account evidence provided by witnesses testifying on behalf of the plaintiffs which showed that they had been in possession and control of these lands for many years before their sale. He further argued that it would be unjust for them to lose out on such property due to lack of formal title when all other facts indicated rightful ownership.