Alexander v. Petty’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 district · 7 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 12 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “It is essential to the maintenance of such an action (for malicious prosecution) that the plaintiff shall prove, among other things, that the prosecution was not only terminated, but terminated in his favor. . . . The quoted principle applies here, of necessity, even though the alleged malicious prosecution here is civil in nature. See Mayflower Industries v. Thor Corp., 15 N.J.Super. 139 , 83 A.2d 246 . It would seem to follow logically from this premise that a counterclaim sounding in malicious prosecution may not be interposed in the very action which is the basis of the claim. See 54 C.J.S. Malicious Prosecution § 54. Moreover, Chancery Court Rule 13, Del.C.Ann., governing counterclaims speaks of “claims” and of necessity defendants do not yet have a legal claim. . . . They have a hope, but the orderly administration of justice is better served, as our Supreme Court has recognized, by awaiting the outcome of the legal action relied upon to justify the claim. [The Court goes on to expressly reject the reasoning and result of the New York Court in Herendeen v. Ley Realty Co., Sup., 75 N.Y.S.2d 836 .]”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Kaye v. Pantone, Inc.