William Gil seeks payment of a promissory note. Gil represents that, on March 13, 1850, William H. Williams and Thomas N. Davis promised to pay him and two fellow lawyers $1,500 on the condition that the State of Louisiana would compensate Williams for the seizure of some of his slaves. Gil claims that he, A. M. Dunn, and J. C. Patterson were to be paid for “professional services rendered” as lawyers in presenting Williams’s and Davis’s case before the State Legislature. Gil claims that he and his colleagues “diligently and effectually” applied their skills and that the State of Louisiana did indemnify Williams and Davis. Gil therefore prays for an order directing Williams and Davis to pay him $500, his share of the promissory note. Related documents reveal that the case was ultimately argued on the issue of the appropriateness of paid services to influence legislators, who in this case were addressing the all-important ban on importation of slaves.
Result: Dismissed; appealed; affirmed.
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Repository: University of New Orleans
