Majority Sanford | End date 1923 | |
Full case name Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company v. United States Citations 261 U.S. 592 (more)
58 Ct.Cl. 709; 43 S.Ct. 425; 67 L.Ed. 816 | ||
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co. v. United States, 261 U.S. 592 (1923), is a US Supreme Court case on contract law. The Supreme Court held that an implied in fact contract exists as, “an agreement … founded upon a meeting of minds, which, although not embodied in an express contract, is inferred, as a fact, from conduct of the parties showing, in the light of the surrounding circumstances, their tacit understanding.”
Judgment
The judgment of the United States Court of Claims dismissing the appellant's action for compensation for costs of constructing temporary barracks to house the National Guard at piers leased by it to appellee was affirmed. The governmental officials involved in the construction at the piers had no authority to order the work so there was no express agreement. Further, the court reasoned there was no substantial basis for an implied in fact contract, because construction was voluntarily undertaken by appellant, with no mention of compensation.