formally Trustees of Dartmouth College v. Woodward
Case in which the U.S. Supreme Court held (1819) that the charter of Dartmouth College , granted in 1769 by King George III, was a contract and as such could not be impaired by the New Hampshire legislature.
State legislators had tried to alter the contract's terms regarding the continuance of the board of trustees, an effort rejected by the court. The decision was far-reaching in its application to business charters, protecting businesses and corporation s from much government regulation. Dartmouth's case was argued by Daniel Webster .