McClure v. Kerchner’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

31 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 31 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “"Influence based on affection for members of a family is not undue influence, as such influence is natural and proper and in a different class from that which a stranger may obtain."”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. In Re Martin's Estate · Hammond v. Frensley

2. ““The testator must have sufficient memory to comprehend the conditions of his property and his relations to the objects of his bounty, but the fact that the memory of an old person has failed somewhat does not of itself invalidate his will, as occasional lapses of memory, mere decay or feebleness of memory or absent mindedness, ought not to invalidate a will unless amounting under our general rule to a mental incapacity to collect the particulars essential to a just testamentary disposition.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Hodges v. North

3. ““A presumption of sanity goes with everyone, and the burden of proving unsoundness of mind in a will contest rests on the contestant.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Slater v. Phipps