Merrell v. Tice’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

11 federal appellate · 2 district · 3 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 39 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “... the copyright books deposited with [the Librarian of Congress] are quasi-records, kept in his custody for public examination,— one object no doubt being to enable other authors to inspect them in order to ascertain precisely what was the subject of copyright.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. National Conference of Bar Examiners v. Multistate Legal Studies, Inc. · Lederer v. Saake

2. ““Uniter ^ ates of Ameeica, ) “ Northern Pistrict of Illinois, J “Greek’s Office of the Disteict Couet op the “United States foe said Disteict. “ Be it remembered, that on the 12th day of August, a.d. 1865, E. B. Myers & Chandler, of said district, deposited in this office the title of a book as follows, to wit: Reports of cases at law and in chancery argued and determined in the Supreme Court of Illinois, by Norman L. Freeman, counsellor- ' at-law, volume 32, containing the remainder of the cases decided at the April term, and a part of the cases decided at the November term, 1863 — “ The right whereof they claim as proprietors, in conformity with an act of Congress entitled ‘ An act to amend the several acts respecting copyrights.’ “"Wm. H. Bradley, Olerk. “ Northern District op Illinois, ss : “I, William H: Bradley, clerk of the District Court of the United States for the Northern District of Illinois, do hereby certify the foregoing to be a true copy from the records of said court in the matter of the entry of a copyright by E. B. Myers & Chandler, as the same appears of record in said court and now remaining in my custody. “In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of said court, at my office, in Chicago, this 12th day of August, a.d. 1865, and of our Independence • the 90th year. “ [l. s.] “Wm. H. Bradley, Olerk. “Work deposited Jan’y 17th, 1866. “Wm. H. Bradley, GVkP”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Callaghan v. Myers

3. ““Then, what is competent proof of such a deposit? If, after complying with all the requisite conditions, the law had authorized letters patent for the copyright to be issued to the proprietor, such letters would be competent, if not conclusive, evidence that the conditions had been complied with. But no such letters are issued in the case of copyrights. It is contended, indeed, that the Librarian’s certificate answers the same purpose. But it is plain that this certificate was only an exemplification of the record required to be made on the filing of the title before publication. Its form, as prescribed by law, and its contents as shown by the copy produced in evidence, show that it relates to nothing else. The publication of the book, and the deposit of copies thereof, may not take place until the lapse of months afterward. The certificate, therefore, has no relation to the deposit of the books. The record of which it is an exemplification is made without reference to any such deposit.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Lederer v. Saake