Rhone Poulenc Rorer Pharmaceuticals Inc. v. Newman Glass Works

I must respectfully dissent. I do not agree that this case is governed by United States v. Spearin, 248 U.S. 132, 54 Ct.Cl. 187, 39 S.Ct. 59, 63 L.Ed. 166 (1918), and its progeny, and, to the extent that the Spearin doctrine does assist us, I believe it requires that we affirm the district court. This case raises a state law issue, and, because the Pennsylvania courts have not expressly adopted Spearin,1 this case is more appropriately analyzed under Filbert v. City of Philadelphia, 181 Pa. 530, 37 A. 545 (Pa.1897), and its progeny.

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In Filbert, the plaintiffs contracted to build a reservoir…