Home > Great American Court Cases > Martin v. Hunter's Lessee

Legal Citation: 14 U.S. 304 (1816)

Plaintiff
Thomas Bryan Martin

Defendant
David Hunter

Plaintiff's Claim
That he, not Hunter, was the rightful owner of a grant of land in Virginia, known as the Northern Neck, left to him by Thomas, Lord Fairfax, a British subject whose title to the land derived from charters from the English kings Charles II and James II.

Chief Lawyer for Plaintiff
Jones

Chief Defense Lawyer
Tucker

Justices for the Court
Gabriel Duvall, William Johnson, Henry Brockholst Livingston, Joseph Story (writing for the Court), Thomas Todd, Bushrod Washington

Justices Dissenting
None (John Marshall did not participate)

Place
Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision
20 March 1816

Decision
That Martin was indeed the rightful owner of the land—and that...