Ritchie v. Sayers’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 1 district · 2 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 6 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The length of time during which the party neglects the assertion of his rights, which must pass) in order to show laches, varies with the peculiar circumstances of each case, and is not, like the matter of limitations,' subject to an arbitrary rule. It is an equitable defence, controlled by equitable considerations, and the lapse of time must be so great, and the relations of the defendant to the rights such, that it would be inequitable to permit the plaintiff to now assert them. There must, of course, have been knowledge on the part of the plaintiff of the existence of the rights, for thére can be no laches in failing to assert rights of which a party is wholly ignorant, and whose existence he had no reason to apprehend.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Mathieson v. Craven

2. ““That may be conceded. But the question is, did it have jurisdiction to enter the particular decree and judgment thereon that it did enter? As we have before seen, we reach the conclusion that the particular judgment could not be entered; and it is a well-settled principle that, although a court may have jurisdiction of a case, yet, if it appears from the record that it did not have jurisdiction to enter the decree and the particular judgment thereon that it did enter, then that decree and judgment may be collaterally impeached.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. In Re Estate of Borlaug