Gilham Barnes's suit against the Boston & Worcester Railroad was not resolved until almost two years after his accident. After the preliminary hearing in September 1837 before the Court of Common Pleas resulted in a decision in Barnes's favor, the parties retained additional counsel for an appearance before the Supreme Judicial Court in November. The well-respected Charles Greely Loring took over the principal role in representing the railroad from George Morey, and Abraham Moore sought the assistance of one of the Massachusetts bar's rising luminaries, Rufus Choate, on Barnes's behalf. At a subsequent appearance before the court in March 1838 the parties reported their agreement to resolve the matter before a panel of referees. Hearings finally began on 27 February 1839 before Emory Washburn, Edward Brooks, and Prince Hawes.

As was his custom, Loring kept extensive records of the arguments and testimony offered by both sides. From these it is possible to reconstruct the hearings more or less word for word.