Pearce v. Foote’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 federal appellate · 45 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 54 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Whoever contracts to have or give to himself or another the option to sell . or buy, at a future time, any grain, or other commodity, stock of any railroad or other company, or gold, or forestalls the market by spreading false rumors to influence the price of commodities therein, or corners the market, or at-_ tempts to do so, in relation to any of such commodities, shall be fined not less ’ than $10 nor more than $1,000, or confined in the county jail not exceeding one year, or both; and all contracts made in violation of this section shall be considered gambling contracts, and shall be void.” 1 Starr & O. Ann. St. 1885, p. 791, c. 38, § 130. “Any person who shall, at any time or sitting, by playing at cards, dice or any other game or games, or by betting on the side or hands of such as do game, or by any wager or bet upon any race, fight, pastime, sport, lot, chance, casualty, election or unknown or contingent event whatever,' lose to any person, so playing or betting, any sum of "money, or other valuable thing, amounting in the whole to the sum of $10, and shall pay or deliver the same or any part thereof, the person so losing and paying or delivering the same, shall be at liberty to sue for and recover tiie money, goods or other valuable thing, so lost and paid or delivered, or any part thereof, or the full value of the same, by action of debt, replevin, assumpsit or trover, or proceeding in chancery, from the winner thereof, with costs, in any court of competent jurisdi”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Stichtenoth v. Central Stock & Grain Exch. of Chicago

2. ““These cases hold these various propositions: (1) That ‘option contracts’ to sell or deliver grain or other commodity, or railroad or other stock, which contracts are intended to be settled by payment of differences at the settling date, are invalid. 79, 83, 113, and 125 Ill., supra. (2) A contract to have or give to himself an option to sell or buy at a future time any grain, etc., subjects the party to fine or imprisonment, and all contracts made in violation of the statute are gambling contracts, and void, under section 130, Cr. Code (Rev. St. 1874, p. 372, c. 38), and all notes or securities, part of the consideration of which is money, etc., won by wager upon an unknown or contingent event, as described in section 131 of the Code, are also void. 95 and 113 Illinois, supra. (3) An ‘option contract’ to sell or buy at a future time grain or other commodity or stock, etc., is void, under the Illinois statute, even though a settlement by differences was' not contemplated. 130 Ill., supra. (4) The keeper of a shop or office where dealing is carried on in stock, etc., on margins, without any intention of delivering articles bought or sold, is guilty of an offense under the Illinois act of 1887 [Laws 1887, p. 96]. 134 Ill., supra.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Christie Grain & Stock Co. v. Board of Trade of Chicago

3. ““Although the statutes being considered are highly penal, there is no warrant for construing them with any unreasonable strictness. They ought rather to have a. just, if not liberal, construction, to the end the legislative intention may be accomplished, — to prohibit all dealings in options in grains or other commodities. Nothing is productive of more mischievous results. Considerable fortunes secured by a life of honest industry have been lost in a single venture in ‘options.’ The evil is all the more dangerous from the fact it seemingly has the sanction of honorable commercial usage in its support. It is a vice that has in recent years grown to enormous proportions. Legitimate transactions on the board oí trade are of tlie utmost importance in commerce. Such contracts, whether for immediate or future delivery, are valid in law, and receive its sanction and all the support that can be given to them. It is only against unlawful ‘gambling contracts’ the penalties of the law are denounced, and no subtle iinesse of construction ought to be adopted to defeat the end it is to be hoped may be ultimately accomplished.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Clews v. Jamieson