Tobey v. County of Bristol
United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
3 Story 800, 23 F. Cas. 1313 (1845)

- Written by Miller Jozwiak, JD
Facts
In 1838, Jonathan Tobey (plaintiff) contracted with the County of Bristol (county) (defendant) to construct a road between two towns. Tobey and the county later disagreed regarding payment for his work. In 1839, the Massachusetts legislature passed a resolution that allowed the county to address the situation in one of two ways: (1) the county’s board of commissioners could resolve Tobey’s claims itself or (2) the county could refer Tobey’s claims to an arbitrator. Tobey then sued and brought a bill seeking to compel the county to submit to arbitration.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Story, J.)
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