Donaldson v. Griffith

Rodney, J.,

delivering the opinion of the court:

It is readily apparent from even a casual inspection of any digest that the authorities seem almost uniform in holding that when a set-off, pleaded by a defendant, exceeds in amount the claim of the plaintiff, that such defendant may obtain a judgment in his favor for such excess. This marked unanimity is, in its.elf, misleading, for the whole subject of set-off is of statutory origin, and no case is of any value without a knowledge of the statute on which it is founded.

Set-off was entirely unknown to the common law, and a creditor might sue and…