As a result of this case, Congress ultimately changed this procedure with the ninth section of the Process and Compensation Act of 1792, allowing circuit courts to issue these writs, thereby assisting citizens living far away from the capital.

[1][4] William West was a farmer, anti-federalist leader, revolutionary war general, and judge from Scituate, Rhode Island.

He made payments on the mortgage for twenty years, and in 1785 asked the state for permission to conduct a lottery to help pay off the remainder.

West then pursued appeal to the Supreme Court on a writ of error, attempting to comply with all statutory directions.

[3] In summation the Dallas reporter quoted John Jay and summed up the case holding as follows: West, Plaintiff in error, v. Barnes et al. On the first day of the term, Bradford presented to the court, a writ, purporting to be a writ of error, issued out of the office of the clerk of the circuit court for Rhode Island district, directed to that court, and commanding a return of the judgment and proceedings rendered by them in this cause: And thereupon he moved for a rule, that the defendant rejoin to the errors assigned in this cause.

[5] Justice James Iredell was upset by the governing statute and wrote to President Washington to change the law, which allowed only the clerk of the Supreme Court to issue writs of error.

They decided that William West lodged payment of his debt with a Rhode Island judge on September 16, and so Barnes had ten days to collect it, according to the state statute.

The Rhode Island "lodging" Act was, however, suspended on the 19th of that month and so the ten-day period could not fully occur since only three days had passed and was thus not conformable to the statute.

According to Cotter v. Alabama, "Prior to 1791 it was the practice that a writ of error could only issue from the office of the clerk of the supreme court.