Hagerman v. Wigent’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 federal appellate · 18 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 19 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““This provision is but declaratory of the common law. The word ‘communication’ must be understood as having been used in the sense which had attached to it by its common use in the same construction. At the common law, testimony of the husband or wife was admissible, after coverture terminated either by divorce or death of the other spouse, in all cases where the facts sought to be proven did not fall within the inhibition against the disclosure of confidential communications between husband and wife made during coverture.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Patterson v. Hill

2. ““In this State it has been frequently held that the surviving husband or wife cannot disclose any communication made during coverture, confidential in its nature, or calculated to reflect upon the character of the deceased. Maynard v. Vinton, 59 Mich. 151 ; Hitchcock v. Moore, 70 Mich. 112 ; Carter v. Hill, 81 Mich. 275 .””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. In re Doty's Estate