In the case of John S. Williams, Administrator of James Williams, Deceased v. Robert M. Gibbes and Charles Oliver, Surviving Executors of Robert Oliver, Deceased; the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a creditor could sue an executor for payment on a debt that had been contracted by his predecessor in office before he took over as executor. The court held that such action was permissible under South Carolina law and affirmed the lower court's decision granting summary judgment in favor of John S. Williams against Robert M. Gibbes and Charles Oliver as surviving executors for their predecessor’s debt obligation to him prior to them taking office as administrators or executors of said estate .

In the dissenting opinion of John S. Williams, Administrator of James Williams, Deceased v. Robert M. Gibbes and Charles Oliver, Surviving Executors of Robert Oliver, Deceased; Justice Grier argued that the Court should not have reversed the decision made by South Carolina's Supreme Court in this case because it had correctly applied state law to determine whether or not a contract between two parties was valid and binding on them both. He believed that since there were no federal laws at issue here and all relevant facts were established through evidence presented in court proceedings before South Carolina's highest court, then its ruling should stand as final without any further review from the US Supreme Court. Furthermore he noted that while some may disagree with how certain issues were decided based on their own interpretation of applicable state law but such disagreements do not provide sufficient grounds for overturning an otherwise sound judgment rendered by a competent tribunal within its jurisdiction