material alteration
Definitions from Case Law · United States Supreme Court
Definitions from Case Law
From 69 U.S. 219 - Smith v. United States · 1864Most cited · 90 citing opinions
the rule is universal that the alteration of an instrument in a material point by the party claiming under it, as by inserting or striking out names without the authority or consent of the other parties concerned, renders the instrument void, unless subsequently approved or ratified
How often courts cite the cases defining “material alteration”
Court decisions citing the 2 opinions that defined “material alteration” — 160 in all, by decade. Counts are citations to the defining cases as a whole, not verified uses of the term. The dip in the most recent years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the latest years.
All 2 definitions, chronological · 1864–1867
a material alteration in any commercial paper, without the consent of the party sought to be charged, extinguishes his liability. The materiality of the alteration is to be decided by the court.
commercial paper