The Dent Act of 1919, was a legislative Act of the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

which authorised the award of compensation for expenditure connected with the prosecution of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, when such expenditure had been made by the claimant "upon the faith of an agreement, express or implied", entered into with an officer or agent acting under the authority of the Secretary of War or of the President". Its full name was "An Act to provide relief in cases of contracts connected with the prosecution of the war, and for other purposes".An Act To provide relief in cases of contracts connected with the prosecution of the war, and for other purposes
Chapter 94, accessed 31 October 2021 It was promoted by Alabama congressman

Stanley Hubert Dent Stanley Hubert Dent Jr. (August 16, 1869 – October 6, 1938) was a U.S. Representative from Alabama. Born in Eufaula, Alabama, Dent attended the common schools, and was graduated from Southern University (later known as Birmingham Souther ...

,Congressional Record - House
Validation of Certain War Contracts
4 February 1919, accessed 31 October 2021 and enacted on 2 March 1919. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad's unsuccessful claim for compensation and petition to the

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

in 1923 were based on this legislation. See Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co. v. United States, 1923.

References

{{US-fed-statute-stub United States federal legislation United States federal appropriations legislation