Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Dickinson v. Stiles — Opinion of the Court
“ Coming to the merits, cases that declare that the acts of Congress supersede all state legislation on the subject of the liability of railroad companies to their employes have nothing to do with the matter. ”
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Dickinson v. Stiles — Opinion of the Court
“ The Minnesota statute does not meddle with that. It affects neither the amount recovered nor the persons by whom it is recovered, nor again the principles of distribution. It deals only with a necessary expense of recovery. Congress cannot have contemplated that the claims to which its action gave rise or power would be paid in all cases without litigation, or that suits would be tried by lawyers for nothing, yet it did not regulate attorney's fees. ”
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Dickinson v. Stiles — Opinion of the Court
“ The facts that raise the question are simple. One Holloway sued the plaintiff in error under the Employers' Liability Act for personal injuries and engaged the defendant in error, Stiles, as his attorney, agreeing to pay him one-third of the amount recovered by suit or settlement. The statutes of Minnesota give the attorney a lien upon the cause of action. ”
