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1 Dall. 444

Cummings v. Lynn

Supreme Court of the United States

Decided September 15, 1789

Supreme Court of the United States · decided 1789-09-15

THIS was an action of Covenant, and the circumstances under which it came before the Court, were these: The plaintiff filed a declaration in the following words; Joseph Lynn, late of the county of Philadelphia, yeoman, was sum moned to answer James Cummings, assignee of James Campbell, and Stephen Kingston, who were assignees of George Turner, of a plea that he hold with him the covenants and agreements of him the said Jo- seph with the said George made, according to the…

Cited in Bouvier (1839)’s definition of “Claim”

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1789-09-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 7 later decisions (1 by the Supreme Court) — most recently June 1924

6 state decisions

20178917901800181018201830184018501860187018801890190019101920decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

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The Chief Justice

¶1now delivered the unanimous opinion of the Court;—That the assignment by Joseph Parker to Joseph Lynn was not an assignment according to the act of assembly ( 1 State Laws 77.)but only a transfer of the equitable interest in the bond ; and that Joseph Lynn could not by virtue thereof maintain an action against the obligor in his own name. The bond was payable to Lestargette; and, although Parker might have released it, it could only at common law, be sued or assigned by the former, See Jenk, Cent. 221. ca. 75.

¶2That Joseph Lynn, the defendant, only assigned his equitable interest in the bond to George Turner. It appears indeed manifestly by the previous assignment of Joseph Parker (which was equally known to Turner and to Lynn) that he had no other interest to assign. It is, therefore, the mere transfer of a chose in action; and, even if an action of covenant might have been brought by George Turner against Lynn on the word assigned; yet, no such action could be maintained against him by the present Plaintiffs, as Lynn's assignment is not made to George Turner and his assigns.

¶3That the covenant implied by the word assigned, extends only to this, that the assignee should receive the money from the obligor to his own use; and, if the obligee should receive it, that then the assignor would be answerable over for it.

¶4By the Court :—For these reasons, let judgment be entered for the Defendant.

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