Nathaniel Williams, as permanent trustee for the creditors of James Williams, an insolvent debtor, brought a case against Charles Oliver, Robert M. Gibbes and Thomas Oliver (executors of Robert Oliver) and John Glenn and David M. Perine (trustees). The plaintiff argued that certain bonds issued by James Williams had been transferred to the defendants without full payment being made in return. The Supreme Court found that although there was evidence to suggest that some consideration had been given for the transfer of these bonds it was not sufficient enough to discharge them from their obligation under law. Furthermore they ruled that if any part of this debt remained unpaid then it should be collected from those who received them or their representatives with interest due at 6%.

In the dissenting opinion of Nathaniel Williams, as Permanent Trustee for the Creditors of James Williams v. Charles Oliver, Robert M. Gibbes and Thomas Oliver, Executors of Robert Oliver and John Glenn and David M. Perine, Tru (1851), Justice McLean argued that a creditor should not be allowed to use their own debt against another party in order to gain an advantage over them in court proceedings. He believed that creditors should not have any special privileges when it comes to collecting debts from insolvent debtors; instead they should be treated like all other parties involved in a lawsuit with respect to their rights under the law. Furthermore, he argued that allowing creditors such privileges would create an unfair situation where one party could take advantage of another simply because they were owed money by someone else who was unable or unwilling to pay it back at this time.