Webb v. McGowin- (Court of Appeals of Alabama, 1935)

Chewbacca, having been imprisoned on Coruscant for illegally freeing wookie slaves, was being whipped to death by Commander Nyklas. Imperial Lieutenant Han Solo entered the room to inform Nyklas that comscan had detected a vessel containing a new shipment of wookie slaves had been detected dropping out of lightspeed. Before speaking, Solo noticed that the whip in Nyklas' hand was about to deliver a likely lethal blow to the beaten, battered, and bloodied wookie, and overcome with guilt, heroically jumped in front of the whip as it fell. Solo was severely injured in the process (given the fact that the whip had been specifically formulated for the sturdy wookie physiology). Chewbacca then proceeded to remove Nyklas' arms from their sockets, and then decided to form a "life-debt" with Solo for his courageous act, promising to repay his kindness with services as a co-pilot, mechanic, dejarik player and drinking companion for the rest of Solo's natural life in addition to a payment of 15 credits every two weeks.

Following his heroic death at Sernpidal, Chewbacca's estate cut off the biweekly payment of 15 credits to Solo and his family. Solo shortly thereafter filed suit for breach of contract.

The New Republic Court of Appeals eventually held that even though Solo had saved Chewbacca's life without his permission, Chewbacca's life had provided the inherent consideration necessary for contractual obligation. By promising to a life-debt and 15 credits every two weeks, Chewbacca had created an effective contract. The court rationalized this by stating that even though there was no express agreement between Solo and Chewbacca before Solo intervened, Chewbacca almost certainly would have agreed to such a contract had there been time to discuss its terms. The court was relying on the concept of the "quasi-contract" or "implied contract", a "legal fiction" used by courts to imply a contract where in fact one did not exist.