In re Mackey’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 federal appellate · 17 district ·

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

1. ““A person engaged chiefly in farming is one whose chief occupation or business is farming. The chief occupation or business of one, so far as-worldly pursuits are concerned, is that which is of principal concern to him, of some permanency in its nature, and on which he chiefly relies for his livelihood, or as the means of acquiring wealth, great or small. That one may principally devote his physical exertions or his time to a given pursuit, while one of the factors entitled to consideration, is not in all cases determinative of the question whether that pursuit is his chief occupation or business. * * * If such dealing is of principal concern to him and chiefly relied on by him for his subsistence and financial advancement, and if he. treats it as of paramount importance to his welfare, he would not be within the category of persons chiefly engaged in farming, even were his farm to yield him some profit. * * * It is evident that it is impracticable, if not impossible, to define with precision the facts which will in all cases determine whether one is engaged chiefly in farming, and that each case must be decided on its own circumstances. It may, however, legitimately be stated, generally, that, if it appears in a given case that one’s occupation or business which is of principal concern to him, not ephemeral, but of some degree of permanency, and on which he mainly relies for his livelihood and financial welfare, be other than farming, he is not ‘a person engaged chiefly in f”

   5 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Bank of Dearborn v. Matney · In re Disney

2. ““ ‘Any natural person, except a wage earner, or a person engaged chiefly in farming or the tillage of the soil, * * may be adjudged an involuntary bankrupt.’ “The act itself! does not otherwise specify the time when the status of the bankiupt is to be determined. Some of the District Courts have construed it to refer to the time ■of the commission of the act of bankruptcy, rather than of the tiling of the petition, going upon the idea that the law should not be so construed as to permit the bankrupt, by a change of occupation between the commission of the act of bankruptcy and the filing of the petition, to defeat the operation of the law. The same reasoning would seem to demand a construction of! the law that would prevent the bankrupt from incuiring debts and acquiring assets in a nonexempt occupation, and then by ceasing to do business in such occupation, and engaging in an exempt ■occupation, and thereafter committing an act of bankruptcy, io defeat the operation of the law. This construction would require that the status of the bankrupt in this respect be determined as of the period during which he was engaged in the business in which be contracted the debts And acquired or owned the assets subject to administration.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. In re Inman

3. ““If it be averred in the petition that the creditors of the bankrupt are less than twelve in number, and less than three creditors have joined as petitioners therein, and the answer avers the existence of a larger number of creditors, there shall be filed with the answer a list under oath of all the creditors, with their addresses, and thereupon the court shall cause all' such creditors to be notified of the pendency of such petition and shall delay the hearing upon such petition for a reasonable time, to the end that parties in interest shall have an opportunity to be heard; if upon such hearing it shall appear that a sufficient number have joined in such petition, or if prior to or during such hearing a sufficient number shall join therein, the case may be proceeded with, but otherwise it shall be dismissed.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. In re Haff