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''Willard v. Tayloe'', 75 U.S. 557 (1869), was a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that courts of equity deciding issues of contract have discretion to determine the form of relief based on the circumstances of each individual case. The Court established a new rule to determine the form of relief: Relief should serve the ends of justice, and should be withheld if it appears likely to produce hardship or injustice to either party. In the instant case, the Court held that plaintiff Henry Willard had not acted in bad faith by tendering United States Notes as down payment for the sale of property, even though the contract in question specified payment in gold or silver coin. Nonetheless, the contract specified payment in coin, and payment in coin must be made. The Court also held that fluctuations in the price of the property between the date on which the contract was agreed and the date the down payment was made do not create issues of equity. ==Background== Colonel John Tayloe III built six two-story row houses facing Pennsylvania Avenue at 14th Street NW in the city of Washington, D.C., in 1816.〔Moeller and Weeks, ''AIA Guide to the Architecture of Washington, D.C.,'' 2006, p. 133.〕〔Hogarth, ''Walking Tours of Old Washington and Alexandria,'' 1985, p. 28.〕 Col. Tayloe leased them in 1817 to John Tennison, who turned them into a hotel under the name "Tennison's Hotel".〔〔 The structures served as a hotel for the next three decades, the leaseholder and name changing several times: Williamson's Mansion Hotel, Fullers American House, and the City Hotel.〔 Col. Tayloe died on March 23, 1828,〔Hardy, ''Colonial Families of the Southern States of America,'' 1911, p. 502.〕 and his son, Benjamin Ogle Tayloe, inherited the property.〔Watson, ''In Memoriam: Benjamin Ogle Tayloe,'' 1872, p. 29.〕 Mr. Tayloe renovated the properties in 1843 and 1844.〔 But by 1847 the structures were in disrepair and he was eager to find a tenant who would maintain them and run the enterprise profitably.〔Willard, "Henry Augustus Willard: His Life and Times," ''Records of the Columbia Historical Society,'' 1917, p. 244-245.〕〔Goode, ''Capital Losses: A Cultural History of Washington's Destroyed Buildings,'' 2003, p. 204.〕 A chance encounter led to a new lease and the eventual sale of the property. Tayloe had become engaged to Phoebe Warren, a wealthy young woman from Troy, New York.〔 Miss Warren was traveling on the steamer ''Niagara'' (a vessel which traveled up and down the Hudson River) when she met Henry Willard, a Chief Steward aboard the vessel.〔〔 Warren was so impressed with the way Willard handled the ship's and passengers' needs that she recommended him to her fianceé.〔 Willard visited Washington, D.C., in October 1847 to meet with Tayloe, who subsequently leased the six buildings to him for use as a hotel.〔 Willard combined the six structures into one building in 1850, added two additional stories, and called the new business the Willard Hotel.〔〔〔Tindall, ''Standard History of the City of Washington From a Study of the Original Sources,'' 1914, p. 353-354.〕〔Burlingame, ''With Lincoln in the White House,'' 2006, p. 197.〕 In 1854, Tayloe leased the property again to Willard, this time for 10 years at a rate of $1,200 per year.〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 558.〕 The lease contained a provision that Willard could purchase the entire property at any time during the life of the lease for $22,500—$2,000 in "cash" down payment and another $2,000 a year (plus interest) thereafter until the mortgage was paid.〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 558-559.〕〔Goode, ''Capital Losses: A Cultural History of Washington's Destroyed Buildings,'' 2003, p. 205.〕 During the lease, the American Civil War broke out and property values in Washington, D.C., skyrocketed.〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 559.〕 Nearly all Northern banks suspended the use of specie (money backed by gold deposits) due to bank runs, and the federal government followed suit shortly thereafter.〔〔Wilson, ''The Business of Civil War: Military Mobilization and the State, 1861-1865,'' 2006, p. 111; Johnson and Buel, ''Battles and Leaders of the Civil War,'' 1888, p. 484.〕〔McPherson, ''Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era,'' 1988, p. 444-447.〕 In 1863, Congress passed the National Banking Act, which authorized the federal government to issue United States Notes (paper money) rather than coins made of gold or silver.〔 The U.S. Notes were not convertible into gold, and quickly depreciated in value.〔Mitchell, ''A History of the Greenbacks, With Special Reference to the Economic Consequences of Their Issue: 1862-65,'' 1903, p. 82-99; Kregel, "The Rise of the Greenback - US Dollar - The Fortunes of Money," ''UNESCO Courier,'' January 1990; O'Leary, "Repeal of the Greenback Conversion Clause," ''American Journal of Economics and Sociology,'' October 1963.〕 On April 15, 1864, two weeks before the lease was due to expire, Willard tendered the down payment to Tayloe in paper money.〔 Tayloe refused to issue the mortgage and turn over the deed, claiming that the hotel was now worth much more than $22,500 and that Willard had not paid in gold (the only form of cash available in 1854) as specified in the lease.〔〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 559-562.〕 Worse, due to inflation, the Notes were worth only about half what gold specie was worth.〔Harman, "Note: Alleviating Hardship Arising From Inflation and Court Congestion: Toward the Use of the Conditional Specific Performance Decree," ''Southern California Law Review,'' March 1983, p. 799.〕 Willard sued for relief.〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 561-562.〕 The Supreme Court of the District of Columbia held in favor of Tayloe.〔''Willard v. Tayloe,'' 75 U.S. 557, 563.〕 Willard appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which granted certiorari.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Willard v. Tayloe」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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