Missouri, Kansas & Texas Trust Co. v. Krumseig

Citations

• 172 U.S. 351
• 19 S. Ct. 179
• 43 L. Ed. 474
• 1899 U.S. LEXIS 1380

Syllabus

<p>Usury is a statutory offence, and Federal courts, in dealing with such a question, must look to the laws of the State where the transaction took ■place, and follow the construction put upon such laws by the state courts.</p> <p>When a State thinks that the evils of usury are best prevented by making usurious contracts void, and by giving a right to the borrowers to have such contracts unconditionally nullified and cancelled by the courts, as in this case, such a view of public policy, in respect to contracts made within the State and sought to be enforced therein, is obligatory on the Federal courts, whether acting in equity, or at law; and the local law, consisting of the applicable statutes, as construed by the Supreme Court of the State, furnishes the rule of decision.</p> <p>These views are not applicable to cases arising out of interstate commerce, where the policy to be enforced is Federal.</p> <p>Whether the contract between the parties in this case was, as a contract of life insurance, void because the defendant had not complied with the statutes of Minnesota, has not been considered by the court.</p>