In the case of William Taylor and Others v. George M. Savage, Executor of Samuel Savage, Deceased, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a deed from Samuel Savage to his son-in-law was valid or not. The deed in question gave title to certain lands located in Virginia that had been owned by Samuel's father prior to his death. At issue were two conflicting laws: one which stated that any land inherited from an ancestor must be divided equally among all heirs; and another which allowed for a parent or grandparent to make gifts of their property during their lifetime without having it subject to division amongst heirs upon death. Ultimately, the court found that since there was no evidence indicating fraud on behalf of either party involved with the transaction, nor any other legal impediment preventing its validity under both state law and common law principles at play at the time, then it should stand as is - thus upholding the gift made by Samuel Savage during his lifetime as valid despite being contrary to what would have otherwise been required under inheritance laws applicable at that time period.

In the dissenting opinion of William Taylor and Others v. George M. Savage, Executor of Samuel Savage, Justice McLean argued that the court should have found in favor of the appellants because they had a valid contract with Samuel Savage to purchase land from him for $2,000 before his death. The majority opinion held that since there was no consideration given by either party at the time of contracting, it was not binding on them after his death; however Justice McLean disagreed and stated that although no money or other form of consideration changed hands between parties at this time does not mean it is invalid as long as both parties agreed to its terms prior to any changes in circumstances such as death or bankruptcy. He further noted that if contracts were only enforceable when something tangible exchanged hands then many important agreements would be rendered void which could lead to great injustice for those involved who relied upon these promises being kept.