Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 (1882). · Go Syfert
Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 (1882). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
730 citation events (37 in the last 25 years) across 110 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Archer Western Contractors, LLC v. McDonnel Group, LLC (laed, 2024-06-06)
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1900 1963 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 46 distinct citers.
discussed Cited as authority (verbatim quote) Archer Western Contractors, LLC v. McDonnel Group, LLC
E.D. La. · 2024 · quote attribution · 1 verbatim quote · confidence high
hence it is that a vested right of action is property in the same sense in which tangible things are property, and is equally protected against arbitrary interference.
examined Cited as authority (quoted) In re Petters Co. (3×)
Bankr. D. Minn. · 2013 · quote attribution · 3 verbatim quotes · confidence low
the principle is that whatever relates merely to the remedy and constitutes part of the procedure is determined by the law of the forum, for matters of process must be uniform in courts of the same country.
examined Cited as authority (quoted) Sylva v. Culebra Dive Shop (3×)
D.P.R. · 2005 · signal: see · quote attribution · 3 verbatim quotes · confidence high
wjhatever goes to the substance of the obligation and affects the rights of the parties, as growing out of the contract itself or inhering in it or attaching to it, is governed by the law of the contract
examined Cited as authority (quoted) Velez Cajigas v. Order of St. Benedict (3×)
D.P.R. · 2000 · signal: see · quote attribution · 3 verbatim quotes · confidence high
wlhatever goes to the substance of the obligation and affects the rights of the parties, as growing out of the contract itself or inhering in it or attaching to it, is governed by the law of the contract.
examined Cited as authority (quoted) Aerojet-General Corporation v. Askew (3×)
5th Cir. · 1975 · signal: see · quote attribution · 3 verbatim quotes · confidence high
the parties (to a contract) cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law which would defeat their engagements.
examined Cited as authority (quoted) Aerojet-General Corp. v. Askew (3×)
5th Cir. · 1975 · signal: see · quote attribution · 3 verbatim quotes · confidence high
the parties cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law which would defeat their engagements.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Daniel R. Denardo v. Roberta Schowen, Jonathan Cohen, F. Michael Kovach, David A. Hubbert, Gary Allen, William Rose, Murray S. Horwitz
9th Cir. · 1991 · confidence medium
It is certainly correct that the unlawful deprivation of a cause of action may rise to the level of a constitutional tort. " '[A] vested right of action is property in the same sense in which tangible things are property, and is equally protected from arbitrary interference.' " Barrett v. United States, 798 F.2d 565, 575 (2d Cir.1986) (quoting Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 132 (1882)). 3 Under the circumstances of this case, however, no such constitutional tort could have occurred.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Perez v. Continental Cas. Co.
La. Ct. App. · 1979 · confidence medium
See Gibbes v. Zimmerman, 290 U.S. 326, 332 , 54 S.Ct. 140 , 78 L.Ed. 342 (1933); Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 132 (1882).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Rubin v. Gallagher
Mich. · 1940 · confidence medium
And thus the distinction is at once established between the law of the contract, which njay be foreign, and the law of the procedure and remedy, which must be domestic and local.” Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 129 (1 Sup. Ct. 102).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Codman v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue
1st Cir. · 1931 · confidence medium
Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 136, 137 , 1 S. Ct. 102 , 27 L.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Federal Surety Co. v. Minneapolis Steel & MacHinery Co.
8th Cir. · 1927 · confidence medium
Ed. 245 ; Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 128, 130 , 1 S. Ct. 102 , 27 L.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Joffe v. Bonn
3rd Cir. · 1926 · confidence medium
They “cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law which would defeat their engagements.” Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 137 , 1 S. Ct. 102, 112 ( 27 L.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Oceanic Steam Nav. Co. v. Corcoran (2×)
2d Cir. · 1925 · confidence medium
And see Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 137 , 1 S. Ct. 102, 112 ( 27 L.
cited Cited as authority (rule) Poole v. Perkins
Va. · 1919 · confidence medium
Ed. 61 ; Pritchard v. Norton; 106 U. S. 124 [1 Sup. Ct. 102, 27 L.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Eberhart v. United States ex rel. First Nat. Bank of Belle Fourche, S. D.
8th Cir. · 1913 · confidence medium
A law that punished a citizen for an innocent action, or, in other words, for an act which, when done, was in violation of no existing law; a law that destroys or impairs the lawful private contracts of citizens; a law that makes a man a judge in his own cause; or a law that takes property from A. and gives it to B.: It is against all reason and justice, for a people to intrust a Legislature with such powers; and therefore, it cannot be presumed that they have done it.” See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 132, 135 , 1 Sup. Ct. 102, 27 L.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Creston National Bank v. Salmon
Mo. Ct. App. · 1906 · confidence medium
The latter must take it cum- onere.” [Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 129, 133 ; Story on Conflict of Laws, sec. 332.] The case of Williams v. Haines, 27 Iowa 251 , Avas perhaps relied upon in the trial court in support of the plaintiff’s view.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Clark v. Eltinge
Wash. · 1905 · confidence medium
Dixon v. Ramsay, 3 Cranch 319, 324 ; United Stales Bank v. Donnally, 8 Pet. 361 ; Wilcox v. Hunt, 13 Pet. 378 ; Leroy v. Beard, 8 How. 451 ; Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 130, 133 .” These authorities show that the liability of a person upon a note or other obligation is fixed and determined by the law of the place where such obligation is created, but that all matters appertaining to the enforcement of the remedy are controlled by the law of the forum.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Trustees of the Freeholders & Commonalty of the Town of Brookhaven v. Smith
N.Y. App. Div. · 1904 · confidence medium
It is well settled in our jurisprudence that the laws which subsist at the time and place of making a contract, and where it is to be performed, enter into and form a part of it, as if they were expressly referred to and incorporated in its terms, and that this principle embraces alike those which affect its validity, construction, discharge and enforcement. ( Von Hoffman v. City of Quincy, 4 Wall. 535 , 550 ; Pritchard v. Horton, 106 U. S. 124, 132, 133 , and authorities there cited ; Barnitz v. Beverly, 163 id. 118, 125, and authorities cited.) Our State Constitution, after providing that al…
cited Cited as authority (rule) Davis v. Tandy
Mo. Ct. App. · 1904 · confidence medium
Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 136, 137 ; Scott v. Perlee, 39 Ohio St. 63 ; Hunt v. Jones, 12 R.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Mutual Life Ins. v. Hill
9th Cir. · 1899 · confidence medium
After due deliberation upon the facts, and careful examination of the authorities, this court arrived at the conclusion that the contract there in question— which, in so far as the legal principles ¿re involved, cannot be distinguished from the facts of this case — was a new York contract; citing in support thereof Wayman v. Southard, 10 Wheat. 48 ; Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 136, 141 , 1 Sup. Ct. 102; Bank v. Hume, 128 U. S. 195, 206 , 9 Sup. Ct. 41; Coghlan v. Railroad Co., 142 U. S. 101, 109 , 12 Sup. Ct. 150; Hall v. Cordell, 142 U. S. 116, 120 , 12 Sup. Ct. 154.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Equitable Life Assur. Soc. v. Nixon
9th Cir. · 1897 · confidence medium
Wayman v. Southard, 10 Wheat. 48 ; Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 136, 141 , 1 Sup. Ct. 102; Bank v. Hume, 128 U. S. 195, 206 , 9 Sup. Ct. 41; Coghlan v. Railroad Co., 142 U. S. 101, 109 , 12 Sup. Ct. 150; Hall v. Cordell, 142 U. S. 116, 120 , 12 Sup. Ct. 154.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Thomas v. American Freehold Land & Mortgage Co. of London, Ltd.
circtsdga · 1891 · confidence medium
Dixon v. Ramsay, 3 Cranch, 319, 324 ; Bank v. Donnally, 8 Pet. 361 ; Wilcox v. Hunt, 13 Pet. 378 ; Le Roy v. Beard, 8 How. 451 ; Pritchard, v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 130, 133 , 1 Sup. Ct. Rep. 102.” “In the supreme court of the District of Columbia,” continues thelearned justice, “as in the circuit court of the United States, the jurisdiction in equity is distinct from the jurisdiction at law, and equitable relief cannot be granted in an action at law;” citing Fenn v. Holme, 21 How. 481 .
cited Cited as authority (rule) Willard v. Wood
SCOTUS · 1890 · confidence medium
Dixon v. Ramsay, 3 Cranch, 319, 324 ; United States Bank v. Donnally, 8 Pet. 361 ; Wilcox v. Hunt, 13 Pet. 378 ; Leroy v. Beard, 8 How. 451 ; Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 130, 133 .
discussed Cited "see" Franza v. Olin
N.Y. App. Div. · 2010 · signal: see · confidence high
“Although a statute is not invalid merely because it reaches back to establish the legal significance of events occurring before its enactment, . . . the Legislature is not free to impair vested or property rights” (Matter of Hodes v Axelrod, 70 NY2d 364, 369-370 [1987]; see Pritchard v Norton, 106 US 124, 132 [1882]; Alliance of Am.
discussed Cited "see" In Re Cincinnati Radiation Litigation (2×)
S.D. Ohio · 1995 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard, 106 U.S. at 132 , 1 S.Ct. at 107-08 ; Gibbs v. Zimmerman, 290 U.S. 326 , 54 S.Ct. 140 , 78 L.Ed. 342 (1933); Fidelity & Deposit Co. of Maryland v. Arenz, 290 U.S. 66 , 54 S.Ct. 16 , 78 L.Ed. 176 (1933). 27 Accordingly, the Court finds that these constitutional rights were clearly established at the time of the alleged conduct so that a reasonable official would have known that his conduct violated the law.
cited Cited "see" Buchanan v. Doe
Alleghany Cir. Ct. · 1992 · signal: see · confidence high
See, Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 129 (1882); State of Maryland v. Coard, 175 Va. 571, 580-81 , 9 S.E.2d 454, 458 (1940).
examined Cited "see" Delhomme Industries, Inc., Cross-Appellant v. Houston Beechcraft, Inc. And Beech Aircraft Corporation, Cross-Appellees (3×)
5th Cir. · 1982 · signal: see · confidence high
Co., 283 So.2d 783, 788 (La.App. 1973); see Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 129 , 1 S.Ct. 102, 105 , 27 L.Ed. 104, 105 (1882). 18 .
discussed Cited "see" Federal Insurance v. Fries
N.Y. City Civ. Ct. · 1974 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton ( 106 U. S. 124, 129 ) (“whatever relates merely to the remedy and constitutes part of the procedure is determined by the law of the forum ”), quoted with approval in Franklin Sugar Refining Co. v. Lipowicz ( 247 N. Y. 465, 469 ).
cited Cited "see" Willard v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co.
Va. · 1973 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 129 (1882); State of Maryland v. Coard, 175 Va. 571, 580-81 , 9 S.E. 2d 454, 458 (1940).
examined Cited "see" Petition of Chadade Steamship Co. (3×)
S.D. Fla. · 1967 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 , 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 ; Davis v. Mills, 194 U.S. 451 , 24 S.Ct. 692 , 48 L.Ed. 1067 .
examined Cited "see" Reconstruction Finance Corp. v. Foust Distilling Co. (3×)
M.D. Penn. · 1952 · signal: see · confidence high
See Black Diamond Steamship Corp. v. Stewart & Sons Ltd., 33C U. S. 386 at page 396, 69 S.Ct. 622, 627 , 93 L.Ed. 754 , * * The forum is not governed by foreign rules of procedure.” Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 , 1 S. Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 .
discussed Cited "see" Black Diamond Steamship Corp. v. Robert Stewart & Sons, Ltd. (2×)
SCOTUS · 1949 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 ; Davis v. Mills, 194 U.S. 451 .
examined Cited "see" Norwood v. Great American Indemnity Co. (3×)
3rd Cir. · 1944 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 133, 134 , 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 ; Restatement, Conflict of Laws (1934 Ed.) § 597.
examined Cited "see" United States v. Rogers & Rogers (3×)
D. Minnesota · 1941 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 , on page 129, 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 ; Federal Surety Company v. Minneapolis Steel & Machinery Company, 8 Cir., 17 F.2d 242 .
examined Cited "see" Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Olds (6×)
6th Cir. · 1932 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 136 , 1 S. Ct. 102 , 27 L.
discussed Cited "see" Mayer v. Garvan (2×)
1st Cir. · 1922 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124 , 1 Sup. Ct. 102, 27 L.
cited Cited "see" Equitable Life Assurance Society of United States v. McRee
Fla. · 1918 · signal: see · confidence high
See Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124 , 1 Sup. Ct. Rep. 102; Equitable Life Assur.
examined Cited "see, e.g." ABN Amro Bank N v. v. Parmalat Finanziara S.P.A. (In Re Parmalat Finanziara S.P.A.) (3×)
S.D.N.Y. · 2008 · signal: see also · confidence low
“The local law of the forum has been held to determine such matters as exceptions to the hearsay rule, the best evidence rule, and the admissibility of testimony by an interested witness.” Restatement (Second) of Conflicts § 138 cmt. a (1971); see also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 129-30 , 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 (1882). 8 A state court would apply the law of the forum to the method of proving a document which was executed in a foreign nation.
examined Cited "see, e.g." Eli Lilly Do Brasil, Ltda v. Federal Express Corp. (6×)
2d Cir. · 2007 · signal: see also · confidence low
Once Lilly — for whatever reason — asked a United States court to consider its contract, it invited application of the well-settled “presumption in favor of applying that law tending toward the validation of the alleged contract.” Kossick v. United Fruit Co., 365 U.S. 731, 741 , 81 S.Ct. 886 , 6 L.Ed.2d 56 (1961); see also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 137 , 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 (1882) (“The parties cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law which would defeat their engagements.” (internal quotation marks omitted)).
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Eli Lilly Do Brazil v. Federal Express Corp.
2d Cir. · 2007 · signal: see also · confidence medium
Once Lilly – 9 for whatever reason – asked a United States court to consider its contract, it invited application of 10 the well-settled “presumption in favor of applying that law tending toward the validation of the 11 alleged contract.” Kossick v. United Fruit Co., 365 U.S. 731, 741 (1961); see also Pritchard v. 12 Norton, 106 U.S. 124, 137 (1882) (“The parties cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law 13 which would defeat their engagements.” (internal quotation marks omitted)).
examined Cited "see, e.g." Lee v. United States (3×)
Ct. Cl. · 1991 · signal: see also · confidence low
See also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 , 1 S.Ct. 102 , 27 L.Ed. 104 (1882); Sperry Corp. v. United States, 853 F.2d 904 (Fed.Cir.1988).
discussed Cited "see, e.g." L. I. Strickland and Bernard F. Wendt v. Jack Morgan Watt and Car Parts Manufacturing Corporation (2×)
9th Cir. · 1972 · signal: see also · confidence low
See also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U.S. 124 , 1 S. A. 102, 27 L.Ed. 104 (1882); Hawkins v. Barney, 30 U.S. [5 Pet.] 457, 8 L.Ed. 190 (1831).
examined Cited "see, e.g." Grain Dealers Mutual Insurance Company v. Van Buskirk (3×)
Md. · 1965 · signal: see also · confidence low
See also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 129 , 1 S.Ct. 102, 106 , 27 L.
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Fromm v. Glueck
N.Y. Sup. Ct. · 1937 · signal: see also · confidence low
See, also, Lowry v. Inman, 46 N. Y. 119, 126 .) Frequently foreign law, by the act and will of the parties, becomes part of their agreement, and in enforcing this “ the law of the forum may find it necessary to give effect to a foreign law.” (Pritchard v. Norton, supra, p. 129 .) As was there pointed out by the Supreme Court, the line of distinction between the right and remedy is frequently not sharply defined.
cited Cited "see, e.g." Atwood v. Walker
Mass. · 1901 · signal: see also · confidence low
See also Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124 .
cited Cited "see, e.g." Limerick National Bank v. Howard
N.H. · 1901 · signal: see also · confidence low
See, also, Pritchard v. Norton, 106 U. S. 124, 129 ; Allen v. Bratton, 47 Miss. 119 ; Woodruff v. Hill, 116 Mass. 310 ; Baxter Nat’l Bank v. Talbot, 154 Mass. 213 ; Harrison v. Edwards, 12 Vt. 648 .
Pritchard
v.
Norton
' Mr. Henry Q. Miller, contra.
Matthews.
that the parties had in contemplation a law according to which their contract would be upheld
5 passages pin-cited by 5 cases
Pinpoint authority: #5,313 of 633,719
Citer courts: Fifth Circuit (6) · D. Puerto Rico (6) · D. Minnesota (3)
Mr. Justice Matthews,

after stating the case, delivered the opinion of the court.

It is claimed on behalf of the plaintiff that by the law of Louisiana the pre-existing liability of Pritchard as surety for the railroad company would be a valid consideration to support the promise of indemnity, notwithstanding his liability had been incurred without any previous request from the defendant. This claim is not controverted, and is fully supported b.y the citations from the Civil Code of Louisiana of 1870, art) 1893-1960, and the decisions of the Supreme Court of that State. Flood v. Thomas, 5 Mart. n. s. (La.) 560; N. O. Gas Co. v. Paulding, 12 Rob. (La.) 378; N. O. & Carrollton Railroad Co. v. Chapman, 8 La. Ann. 97; Keane v. Goldsmith, Haber, & Co., 12 id. 560. In the case last mentioned it is said that “ the contract is, in its nature, one of personal warranty, recognized by articles 378 and 379 of the Code of Practice.” And it was there held that a right of action upon the bond of indemnity accrued to the obligee, when his liability became fixed as surety by a final judgment, without payment on his part, it being the obligation of the. defendants upon the bond of indemnity to jpay the judgment rendered against him, or to furnish him the money with which to pay it.

The single question presented by the record, therefore, is whether the law of New York or that of Louisiana defines and fixes the rights and .obligations of the parties. If the former applies^ the judgment of the court below is correct; if the latter, it is erroneous.

The argument in support of the judgment is simple, and may be briefly stated. It is, that New York is the place of the contract, both because it was executed and delivered there, and because no other place of pei’formance being either designated or necessarily implied, it was to be performed there; wherefore the law of New York, as the lex loci contractus, in both senses, being lex loci celebrationis and. lex loci solutionis, [*129] must apply to determine not only the form of the contract, but also its validity.

On the other hand, the application of the law of Louisiana may be considered in two aspects: as t.he lex fori, the suit having been brought in a court exercising jurisdiction within its territory and administering its laws; and as the lex loei solur tionis, the obligation of the bond of indemnity being to place the fund for payment in the hands of the surety, or to repay him the amount of his advance, in the place where he was .bound'to discharge his own liability.

It will be convenient to consider the applicability of the law of Louisiana, first, as the lex fori, and then as the lex loei solutionis.

1. The lex fori.

The court below, in a cause like the present, in which its jurisdiction depends on the citizenship of the parties, adjudicates their rights precisely as should a tribunal of the State of Louisiana according to her laws; so that, in that sense, there is no question as to what law must be administered. But, in case of contract, the foreign law may, by the act and will of the parties, have become part of their agreement; and, in enforcing this, the law of the forum may find it necessary to give effect to a foreign law, which, without such adoption, would have no force beyond its own territory.

This, upon the principle of comity, for the purpose of promoting and facilitating international intercourse, ánd within limits fixed by its own public policy, a civilized State is accustomed and considers itself bound to do; but, in doing so, nevertheless adheres to its own system of formal judicial procedure and remedies. And thus the distinction is at once established between the law of the contract, which may be foreign, and the law of the procedure and remedy, which must be domestic and local. In respect to the latter the foreign law is rejected; but hów and where to draw the line of precise classification it is not always easy to' determine.

The principle is, that whatever relates merely to the remedy and constitutes part bf the procedure is determined by the law of the forum, for matters of process must be uniform in the courts of the same country; but whatever goes to the sub[*130] stance of the obligation and affects the rights of the parties, as growing out of the contract itself, or inhering in it or attaching to it, is governed by the law of the contract.

The rule deduced by Mr. Wharton, in his Conflict of Laws, as best harmonizing the authorities and effecting the most judicious result, and which was cited approvingly by Mr. Justice Hunt in Scudder v. Union National Bank, 91 U. S. 406, is, that “ Obligations in respect to the mode of their solemnization are subject to the rule locus- regit actum; in respect to their interpretation, to the lex loci contractus; in respect to the mode of their performance, to the law of - the place of their performance. But the lex fori determines when and how such laws, when foreign, are to be adopted, and, in all cases not specified above, supplies the applicatory law.’.’ This, it will be observed, extends the operation of the lex fori beyond the process and remedy, so as to embrace the whole of that residuum which cannot be referred to other laws. And this conclusion is obviously just; for whatever cannot,.from the nature of the case, be referred to any other law, must be d'etermined by the tribunal having jurisdiction of the litigation, according to the law of its awn locality.

Whether an assignee of a chose in action shall sue in his own. name or that of his assignor is a technical question of mere process, and determinable by the law of the forum; but whether the foreign assignment, on which the plaintiff claims is valid at all, or whether it is valid against the defendant, goes to the merits and must be decided by the law in which' the case has its legal seat. Wharton, Conflict of Laws,, sects. 785, 736. Upon that point Judge Kent, in Lodge v. Phelps, 1 Johns. (N. Y.) Cas. 139, said: “ If the defendant has any defence authorized by, the law of Connecticut, let him show it, and he will be heard in one form of action as well as in the other.”

It is to be noted, however, as an important circumstance, that the same claim may sometimes' be a mere matter of process, and so determinable by the law of the forum, and sometimes a matter of substance going to the merits, and therefore determinable by the law of the contract. That is illustrated in the application of the defence arising upon the Statute of Limitations. In the courts of England and America, that[*131] defence is governed by the law of the forum, as' being a matter of mere procedure; while in continental Europe the defence of prescription is regarded as going to the substance of the contract, and therefore as governed by the law of the seat of' the obligation. “ According to the true doctrine,” says Savigny, “ the local law of the obligation must determine as to the term of prescription, not that of the place of the action; and this rule, which has just been laid down in respect to exceptions in general, is further confirmed, in the case of prescription, by the fact that the various grounds on which it rests stand in connection with the substance of the obligation itself.” Private Inter. Law, by Guthrie, 201. In this view Westlake concurs. Private Inter. Law (ed. 1858), sect. 250. He puts it, together with the case of a merger in another cause of action, the occurrence of which will be determined by the law of the former cause, Bryans v. Dunseth, 1 Mart. n. s. (La.) 412, as equal instances of the liabilify to termination inherent by the lex contractus. But notwithstanding the. contrary doctrine of the courts of England and this country, when the Statute of Limitations of a particular country not only bars the right of action, but extinguishes the claim or title itself, ipso facto, and declares it a nullity, after the lapse of the prescribed period, and the parties have been resident within the jurisdiction during the whole of that period, so that it has actually and fully operated upon the case, it must be held, as it was considered by Mr. Justice Story, to be an extinguishment of the debt, wherever an attempt might be made to enforce it. Conflict of Laws, sect. 582. That rule, as he says, has in its support the direct authority of this court in Shelby v. Guy, 11 Wheat. 361-371; its correctness was recognized by Chief Justice Tindal in Huber v. Steiner, 2 Bing. N. C. 202, 211; and it is spoken of by Lord Brougham in Don v. Lippmann, 5 Cl. & Fin. 1,16, as “ the excellent distinction taken by Mr. Justice Story.” Walworth v. Routh, 14 La. Ann. 205. The same principle was applied by the Supreme Court of Ohio in the case of the P. C. & St. L. Railway Co. v. Hine's Admx., 25 Ohio St. 629, where it was held, that under the act which requires compensation for' causing death by wrongful act, neglect, or default, and gives a right of[*132] action, provided such action shall be commenced within two years after the death of such deceased person, the proviso is a condition qualifying the right of action, and not a mere limitation on the remedy. Bonte v. Taylor, 24 id. 628.

The principle that what is apparently mere matter of remedy in some circumstances, in others, where it touches the substance of the controversy, becomes matter of right, is familiar in our constitutional jurisprudence in the application of that provision of the Constitution which prohibits the passing by a State of any law impairing the obligation of contracts. For it has been uniformly held that1 “any law. which in its operation amounts to a denial or obstruction of the rights accruing by a contract, though professing to act only on the remedy, is directly obnoxious to the prohibition of the Constitution.” McCracken v. Hayward, 2 How. 608, 612; Cooley, Const. Lim. 285.

Hence it is that a vested right of action is property in the same sense in which tangible things are property, and is equally protected against arbitrary interference. Whether it springs from contract or from the principles of the common law, it is not competent for the legislature to take it away. A vested right to an existing defence is equally protected, saving only those which are based on informalities not affecting substantial rights, which do' not touch the substance of the contract and are not based on equity and justice. Cooley,'Const. Lim. 362-369. .

The general rule, as- stated by Story, is that a defence or discharge, vgood by the law of the place where the contract is made or is to be’ performed, is to be held of equal validity in every other place where the question, may come, to be litigated. Conflict of Laws, sect. 331. Thus infancy, if a valid defence by the lex loci contractus, will be a valid defence everywhere. Thompson v. Ketcham, 8 Johns. (N. Y.) 189; Male v. Roberts, 3 Esp. 163. A tender and refusal, good by the same law, either as a full discharge or as a present fulfilment of the contract, will be respected everywhere. Warder v. Arell, 2 Wash. (Va.) 282. Payment in paper-money bills, or in other things, if good by the same law, will be deemed a sufficient payment everywhere.. 1 Brown, Ch. 376; Searight v. Calbraith, [*133] 4 Dall. 325; Bartsch v. Atwater, 1 Conn. 409. And, on the other hand, where a payment by negotiable bills or notes is, by the lex loci, held to be conditional payment only, it will be so. held even in States where such .payment under the domestic, law would be held absolute. • So,” if by the law of the place of a contract equitable defences are allowed in favor of the maker of a negotiable note, any • subsequent indorsement will not change' his rights in regard to the holder. The latter must take‘it cum onere. Evans v. Gray, 12 Mart. (La.) 475; Ory v. Winter, 4 Mart. n. s. (La.) 277; Chartres v. Cairnes, id. 1; Story, Conflict of Laws, sect. 332.

'.On the other hand, the law of the forum determines the form- of the action, as whether it shall be assumpsit, covenant, or- debt. Warren v. Lynch, 5 Johns. (N. Y.) 239; Andrews v. Herriot, 4 Cow. (N.Y.) 508; Trasher v. Everhart, 3 Gill & J. (Md.) 234; Adams v. Kers, 1 Bos. & Pul. 360; Bank of the United States v. Donally, 8 Pet. 361; Douglas v. Oldham, 6 N. H. 150. In Le Roy v. Beard, 8 How. 451, where it' was " held that assumpsit- and hot covenant was the proper form of action brought in New. York upon a covenant executed and to be perforated in Wisconsin, and by its laws sealed as a- deed, but which fn the' 'former was not regarded as sealed, it was said by this court, that it was so decided without impairing at all the principle, that in deciding on the obligation.-of .the instrument as a contract, and not the remedy on it elsewhere, the • law of Wisconsin, as the lex loci contractus, must govern.”-' It . regulates all process-, both mesne and final. Ogden v. Saunders, 12 Wheat. 213; Mason v. Haile, id. 370; Beers v. Haughton, 9 Pet. 329; Von Hoffman v. City of Quincy, 4 Wall. 535. It also may admit, as a part of its domestic procedure, a set-off or compensation of distinct causes of action oecween the parties to the suit, though not admissible by the kw of the place of the contract.. Story, Conflict of Laws, sect. 574; Gibbs v. Howard, 2 N. H. 296; Ruggles v. Keeler, 3 Johns. (N. Y.) 263. But this is not to be confounded,- as it was in the case of Second National Bank of Cincinnati v. Hemingray, 31 Ohio St. 168, with that of a linfited negotiability, by which the right of set-off between the original .parties is preserved as part of the law of the contract, notwithstanding an assignment. The rules of[*134] evidence are also supplied by the law of the forum. Wilcox v. Hunt, 13 Pet. 378; Yates v. Thomson, 3 Cl. & Fin. 544; Bain v. Whitehaven, & c. Railway Co., 3 H. of L. Cas. 1; Don v. Lippmann, 5 Cl. & Fin. 1. In Yates v. Thomson, supra, it was decided by the House of Lords that in a suit in a Scotch court, to adjudge the succession to personalty • of a decedent domiciled in England, where it was admitted that the English law governed the title, nevertheless it was' proper to receive in evidence, as against a will of the decedent, duly probated in England, a second will which had not been proved there, and was not receivable in English courts as competent evidence, because such a paper according to Scottish law was admissible, In Hoadley v. Northern Transportation Co., 115 Mass. 304, it was held that if the law of the place, where a contract signed only by the carrier is made for the carriage of goods, requires evidence other than the mere receipt by the. shipper to show his assent to its terms, and the law of the place where the suit is brought presumes conclusively such assent from acceptance without dissent, the question of assent is a question of evidence, and is to be determined by the law 6f the place where the suit is brought. In a suit in Connecticut against the indorser on a note made and indorsed in New York, it was held tha,t parol evidence of a special agreement, different from that imputed by law, would be received in defence, although by the law of the latter State no agreement different from that which the law implies from a blank indorsement could be proved by parol. Downer v. Cheseborough, 36 Conn. 39. And upon the same principle it has been held that a contract, valid by the laws of the place where it is made, although not in writing, will not be enforced in the courts of a country where the Statute, of Frauds prevails, unless it is put in writing. Leroux v. Brown, 12 C. B. 801. But where the law of the forum and that of the place of the execution of the contract coincide, it will be enforced, although required to be in writing by the law of the place' of performance, as was the case of Scudder v. Union National Bank, 91 U. S. 406, because the form of the contract is regulated by the law of the place of its celebration, and the evidence of it by that of the forum.

Williams v. Haines, 27 Iowa, 251, was an action upon a note[*135] executed in Maryland, and, so !far as appears from the report, payable there, where the parties thereto then resided, and which was a sealed instrument, according to the laws of that State, in support of which those laws conclusively presumed a valid consideration.- By the laws of Iowa, to such an instrument the want of consideration was allowed to be proved as a defence. It was held by the Supreme Court of that State, in an opinion delivered by Chief Justice Dillon, that the law of Iowa related to the remedy merely, without impairing the obligation of the contract, and, as the lex fori, must govern the case. 'He said: “ Respecting what shall be good defences to actions in this State, its courts must ^administer its own laws and not those of other States. The common-law rules do not so inhere in the contract as to have the portable quality ascribed to them by the plaintiff’s counsel, much less can they operate to override the plain declaration of the legislative will.” The point of this decision is incorporated by Mr.- Wharton into the text of his Treatise on the Conflict of Laws, sect. 788, and the case itself is referred to in support of it. He deduces the same conclusion from those cases, already referred to, which declare that assumpsit is the only form of action that' can be brought upon an instrument which is not under seal, according to the laws of the forum, although by the law of the place where it was executed, or was to be performed, it would be regarded as under seal, in which'debt or covenant would lie, on the ground that a plea of want or failure of consideration is recognized as a defence in all actions of assumpsit. Wharton, Conflict of Laws,. sect. 747.

If the proposition be sound, its converse is equally so; and the law-of the place where a suit may happen to be brought may forbid the impeachment of a contract, for want of a valid • consideration, which, by the law of the place of - the contract, might be declared invalid on that account.

•' We cannot, however, accept this conclusion. The question of consideration, whether arising ' upon the admissibility of evidence or presented as a point in pleading, is not one of procedure and remedy. It goes to the substance of the right itself, and belongs to the constitution of the contract. The difference between the law of Louisiana and that of New York, presented[*136] in this case, is radical, and gives rise to the inquiry, what, according to each, are the essential elements of a valid contract, determinable only by the law of its seat; and not that other, what remedy is provided by the law of the place where the suit has been brought to recover for the breach of its obligation.

On this point, what was said in The Gaetano & Maria, 7 P. D. 137, is pertinent. In that case the question was whether the English law, which was the law of the forum, or the Italian , law, which was the law of the flag, should prevail, as to.the validity of. a hypothecation of the cargo by the master of a ship. It was claimed that because the matter to be proved was, whether there .was a necessity which justified .it, it thereby became a matter of procedure, as being a matter of evidence. Lord Justice Brett said: “Now, the manner of proving the facts is matter of evidence, and, to my mind, is matter of procedure, but the facts to be proved are not matters of procedure; they are-matters with which the procedure has to deal.”

It becomes necessary, therefore, to consider the applicability of the law of Louisiana as —

2. The lex loei solutionis.

The phrase lex loci contractus is used, in a double sense, to mean, sometimes, the law of the place where a contract is entered. into; sometimes, that of the place of its performance. And when it is employed to describe the law of the seat of the obligation, it is, on that account, confusing. The law we are in search of, which is to decide upon the nature, interpretation, and validity of the engagement in question, is that which the parties have, either expressly or presumptively, incorporated into their contract as constituting its obligation. It has never been better described than it was incidentally by Mr. Chief Justice Marshall in Wayman v. Southard, 10 Wheat. 1, 48, where he defined it as a principle of .universal law, —“ The principle ..that in every forum a contract is governed by the law with a view to which it was made.” The same idea had been expressed by. Lord Mansfield in Robinson v. Bland, 2 Burr. 1077, 1078. “ The law of the place,” he said, “ can never be the rule where the transaction is entered into with an express view to the law of another country, as the rule by which it is to be governed. ” And in Lloyd v. Guibert, Law Rep. 1 Q. B. 115, 120[*137] , in the Court of Exchequer Chamber, it was said that “ It is necessary to consider by what general law the parties intended that the transaction should be governed, or rather, by what general law it is just to presume that they have submitted themselves in the matter.” Le Breton v. Miles, 8 Paige (N.Y.), 261.

261. It is upon this ground that the presumption rests, that the contract is to be performed at the place where it is made, and to be governed by its laws, there being nothing in its terms, or in the explanatory circumstances of its execution, inconsistent with that intention.

So, Phillimore says: “ It is always to be remembered that in obligations it is the will of the contracting parties, and not the law, which fixes the place of fulfilment — whether that place be fixed by express words or by tacit implication — as the place to the jurisdiction of which the contracting parties elected to submit themselves.” 4 Int. Law, 469.

The same author concludes his discussion of the particular topic as follows: “ As all the foregoing rules rest upon the presumption that the obligor has voluntarily submitted himself to a particular local law, that presumption may be rebutted, either by an express declaration to the contrary, or by the fact that the obligation is illegal by that particular law, though legal by another. The parties cannot be presumed to have contemplated a law which would defeat their engagements.” 4 Int. Law, sect, dcltv. pp. 470, 471.

This rule, if universally applicable, which perhaps it is -not, though founded on the maxim, ut res magis valeat, quam pereat, would be decisive of the present controversy, as conclusive of the question of' the application of the law of Louisiana, by which alone the undertaking of the obligor can be’ upheld.

At all events, it is a circumstance, highly persuasive in its character, of the presumed intention of the parties, and entitled to prevail, unless controlled by more express and positive proofs of a contrary intent.

It was expressly referred to as á decisive principle in Bell v. Packard, 69 Me. 105, although it cannot be regarded as the foundation of the judgment in that case. Milliken v. Pratt, 125 Mass. 374.

[*138] If now we examine the terms of the bond of indemnity, and the situation and relation of the parties, we shall find conclusive corroboration of the presumption, that the obligation was entered into in view of the laws of Louisiana.

The antecedent liability of Pritchard, as surety for the railroad company on the appeal bond, was confessedly contracted in that State, according to its laws, and it was there alone that it could be performed and discharged. Its undertaking was, that Pritchard should, in certain contingencies, satisfy a judgment of its courts. That could be done only within its territory and according to its laws. The condition of the obliga,tion, which is the basis of.this action, is, that'McComb and Norton, the obligors, shall hold harmless and fully indemnify Pritchard against all loss or damage arising from his liability as surety on the appeal bond. A judgment was, in fact, rendered against him on it in Louisiana. There was but one way in which the obligors in the indemnity bond could perfectly satisfy its warranty. .That was, the moment the judgment was rendered against Pritchard on the appeal bond, to come forward in his ’stead, and, by payment, to extinguish it. He was entitled to demand this before any payment by himself, and to require that the fund should be forthcoming at the place where otherwise he could be required to pay it. Even if it should be thought that Pritchard was bound to pay the judgment recovered • against himself, before his right of recourse accrued upon the bond of indemnity, nevertheless he was entitled to be reimbursed the amount of his advancé at the same place where he had been required to make it. So that it is clear, beyond any doubt, thát the obligation of the indemnity was to be fulfilled in Louisiana, and, consequently, is subject, in all matters affecting its .construction and validity, to the law of that locality.

This construction is abundantly sustained by the authority of judicial decisions in similar cases.

In Irvine v. Barrett, 2 Grant’s (Pa.) Cas. 73, it was decided that where a security is given in pursuance of a decree of a court of justice, it is to be construed according to the intention of the tribunal which directed its execution, and, in contemplation of law, is to be performed at the place where the court

[*139] exercises its jurisdiction; and'that a bond given in another State, as collateral to such an obligation, is controlled by the same law which controls the principal indebtedness. In the case of Penobscot & Kennebec Railroad Co. v. Bartlett, 12 Gray (Mass.), 244, the Supreme Judicial; Court of Massachusetts decided that a contract made in that State to subscribe to shares in the capital stock of a railroad corporation established by the laws of another State, and having their road and treasury there, is a contract to be performed there, and is to be construed by the laws of that State. In Lanusse v. Barker, 3 Wheat. 101, 146, this court declared that “ where a general authority is given to draw bilis from a certain place, on account of advances there made, the undertaking is to replace the money at that place.”

The case of Cox v. United States, 6 Pet. 172, was an action upon the official bond of a navy agent. The sureties contended that the United States were bound to divide their action, and take judgment against each surety only for his proportion of the sum due, according to the laws of Louisiana, considering it a contract made there, and to be governed in this respect by the law of that State. ‘ The court,1 however, said: “But admitting the bond to have been signed at New Orleans, it is very clear that the obligations imposed upon the parties, thereby looked for its execution to the city of Washington. It is immaterial where the services as navy agent were to be performed by Hawkins. His accountability for non-performance was to be at the • seat of government. He was bound to account, and the sureties undertook that he should account for all public moneys received by him, with such officers of the'government of the United States'as are duly authorized to settle and adjust his accounts. The bond is given with reference to the laws of the United States on that' subject. And such accounting is ‘required to be with, the Treasury Department at the seat, of government; and the navy agent is bound by the very terms of the bond to pay over such sum as may be found due to the United States on such settlement; and such paying over must be to the Treasury Department, or in such manner as shall be directed by the secretary. The bond is, therefore, in every point of view in -which[*140] it can be considered, a contract to be executed at the city of Washington, and the liability of the parties must be governed by the rules of the common law.” This decision was repeated in Duncan v. United States, 7 Pet. 435.

These cases were relied on by the Supreme Court of New York in Commonwealth of Kentucky v. Bassford, 6 Hill (N. Y.), 526. That was an action upon a bond executed in New York conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties enjoined by a law of Kentucky authorizing the obligees to sell lottery [tickets for the benefit of a college in that State. It was held that the stipulations of the bond were to be performed in Kentucky, and that, as it was -valid by the laws of that State, the courts of New York .would .enforce it, notwithstanding it would be illegal in that State.

Boyle v. Zacharie, 6 Pet. 635, is a direct authority upon the point. There Zacharie and' Turner were resident merchants at New Orleans, and Boyle at Baltimore. The latter sent his ship to New;Orleans, consigned to Zacharie and Turner, where she arrived, and, having landed her cargo, the latter procured a freight for her to Liverpool. When she was ready to sail she was attached by process of law at the suit of certain creditors of Boyle, and Zacharie and Turner procured her release by becoming security for Boyle on the attachment. Upon information of the facts, Boyle promised to indemnify them for any loss they might sustain on that account. Judgment was rendered against them on the attachment bond, which they were compelled to pay, and to recover the amount so paid they brought suit in the Circuit Court for Maryland against Boyle upon his promise of indemnity. A judgment was rendered by confession in that cause, and a bill in equity was subsequently filed to enjoin further proceedings on it, in the course of which-various, questions arose, among them, whether the promise of indemnity was a Maryland or a Louisiana contract. Mr. Justice Story, delivering the opinion of the court, said: “ Such a contract would be understood by all parties to be a contract made in tbe place where the advance was to be made, and the payment, unless otherwise stipulated, would also be understood to be made there ; ” “that the contract.would clearly refer for its. execution to Louisiana.”

[*141] The» very point was also decided by this court in Bell v. Bruen, 1 How. 169. That was an action upon a guaranty written by the defendant in New York, addressed to the plaintiffs in London, who, at the latter place, had made advances of a credit to Thorn. The operative language of the guaranty was, “ that you may consider this, as well as any and every other credit you may open in his favor, as being under my guaranty.” The court said : “ It was an engagement to be executed in England, and must be construed and have effect according to the laws of that country,” citing Bank of the United States v. Daniel, 12 Pet. 54. As the money was advanced in England, the guaranty required that it should be replaced there, and that is the precise nature of the obligation in the present case. Pritchard could only be indemnified against loss arid damage on account of his liability on the appeal bond, by having funds placed in his hands in Louisiana wherewith to discharge it, or by being repaid there the amount of his advance. To the same effect is Woodhull v. Wagner, Baldw. 296,

We do not hesitate, therefore, to decide that the bond of indemnity sued on was entered into with a view to the law of Louisiana as the place for the fulfilment of its obligation ; and that the question of its validity, as. depending on the character and sufficiency of the consideration, should be determined by the law of Louisiana, and not that of New York. For.error in its rulings on this point, consequently, the judgment of the Circuit Court is reversed, with directions to grant a new trial.

New trial ordered.