Starr v. Watrous’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 federal appellate · 2 district · 40 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 47 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “I direct that all my just debts, funeral expenses, succession and other taxes be paid by my executors hereinafter named. . . .”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Bulliard v. Bulliard · Johnson v. Hall

2. “in general, all that is required is that the will sufficiently express an intent that the tax shall be paid out of the estate of the testator other than the property passing to the recipient as donee, beneficiary, or distributee. A natural and appropriate method of accomplishing this purpose is to provide for payment of the tax in like manner as debts of the estate and funeral expenses, the result of this course being that the tax ultimately comes out of the residuary estate.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Johnson v. Hall

3. ““If the testatrix had merely directed that her debts, funeral expenses, and taxes be paid by her executors, without specific mention of succession taxes, the provision doubtless would be construed as referring only to taxes which are ordinarily payable out of the estate as are other debts of the testatrix and, as in Jones Estate, 12 Pa. Dist. R. 83, not expressing with sufficient clearness an intention to include taxes normally payable out of the several legacies.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 8 Kan. App. 2d 778 - Wendland v. Washburn University