Hawkins v. McGee

"Hawkins v. McGee", 84 N.H. 114, 146 A. 641 (N.H. 1929), [ [http://www.law.pitt.edu/madison/contracts/supplement/hawkins_v_mcgee.htm Full text of the opinion] ] is a leading case on damages in contracts handed down by the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

This case is also famous for its mention in the John Jay Osborn, Jr. book, "The Paper Chase", and in the film version of that work, as well as its use in legal education. [E. Allen Farnsworth, William F. Young, Carol Sanger, "Contracts: Cases and Materials, Sixth Edition" (Foundation Press, 2001) p. 127, note b (stating that the case "became part of modern contract lore as a result of John Osborne's book and the subsequent movie The Paper Chase..."]

Background

This is a law school damages case: how are some contract damages calculated? Hawkins' hand was scarred from contact with an electrical wire. He was approached by McGee, a doctor, about having the scars removed. McGee guaranteed to make the injured hand a "one hundred percent good hand". McGee used a technique of "skin grafting" that he was unfamiliar with and failed to remove the scars. The graft caused the palm of Hawkins' hand to grow thick hair. Hawkins sued under a theory of breach of contract and prayed for damages from the pain from the operation and the damage the operation had caused to his hand.

The issue before the court was what type of damages should be awarded.

Reasoning

The court held that the amount of damages awarded should be equal to the difference between the value of what Hawkins was promised to receive--a "one hundred percent good hand"-- and what he in fact received--a hairy palm-- as well as any incidental losses he incurred as a result of the breach. This is known as expectation interest, (or Expectation damages) which attempts to put the plaintiff into a position where they would have been had the contract not breached. The court made a point of dismissing the argument towards damages for the pain and suffering because pain and suffering were an implicit part of the contract for surgery.In sum, the plaintiff received damages in the amount of the difference between what he expected under contract--a perfect hand--and what he received--a hairy hand. Pain and suffering were found to be part of the contract, part of the operation, and therefore not part of damages or breach.

Later use

This case has been a staple of casebooks on contract law for decades, and has come to be known as the "Hairy Hand" case because of the subsequent decision in McGee v. United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. wherein Doctor McGee sues his malpractice insurer who had refused to reimburse him for the damages awarded in the original lawsuit. Professor Kingsfield refers to the "Hairy Hand" in the popular movie "The Paper Chase", although no such description is provided in the original court decision until McGee's related lawsuit in 1931 heard by the First Circuit Court of Appeals. The Hawkins family did not know of the case's prominence in contract casebooks until 1964 when Gail Hawkins encountered it in her first-year contracts class at Boston University School of Law.cite book |last=Fuller |first=Lon L. |authorlink= |coauthors=Melvin Aron Eisenberg|title= |year=2006 |edition=8th edition |publisher=Thomson/West |location=St. Paul, Minn. |isbn=0-314-15901-0|pages=190-197] The family also did not learn about the case's use in "The Paper Chase," until Gail's mother, Edith, saw the movie during its first run in 1973.

References