Richter v. Jerome

Supreme Court of the United States

May 4, 1885.

Supreme Court of the United States

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

““ * * * any circuit court, upon application to it as a court of equity, may, according to the uses of chancery, direct depositions to be taken in perpetuam rei memoriam, if they relate to any matter that may be cognizable in any court of the United States.””

quoted by 1 later decision, including W. H. Elliott & Sons, Inc. v. E. & F. King & Co.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Petition denied / appeal dismissed · 9–0 ·

How this case has been cited

Cited by 3 later decisions — most recently May 1986

1 district · 1 state decisions

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

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J. P. Whittemore, for the motion.

H. H. Wells, in opposition.

WAITE, C. J.

¶1

This motion is denied. Equity rule 70 has no application to this case, and the affidavits presented do not show such facts as render it necessary for this court to make any special order in the premises. Under section 866 of the Revised Statutes 'any circuit court, upon application to it as a court of equity, may, according to the usages of chancery, direct depositions to be taken in perpetuam rei memoriam, if they relate to any matter that may be cognizable in any court of the United States.' There is nothing in the motion papers to indicate that the appellant may not proceed under this statute to take and perpetuate his testimony, if he has reason to fear that it will otherwise be lost.