Scofield v. Olcott’s Empirical Analysis
1887
Citation profile
4 federal appellate · 89 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 105 later decisions (1 by the Supreme Court) — most recently March 1989 · most notably Potter v. Couch (1891), Bond v. Moore (1908)
4 federal appellate · 89 state decisions — followed in 13 states
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.
Relationships
Relies on McArthur v. Scott · Santa Clara Female Academy v. Sullivan · Weston v. Weston · Railsback v. Lovejoy
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 105 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““But even though there be no other- gift than in the direction to pay or distribute in futuro, yet, if such payment or distribution appear to be postponed for the convenience of the fund or property, as where the future gift is postponed to let in some other interest, for instance, if there is a prior gift for life, or a bequest to trustees to pay debts, and a direction to pay upon the decease of the legatee for life, or after payment of the debts, the gift in remainder vests at once, and will not be deferred until the period in question. But where the payment is deferred for reasons personal to the legatee, the gift will not vest till the appointed- time. ... In other words, if the reason for the postponement is the position of the fund, the bequest in remainder vests at once; but if it is the position of the legatee, the remainder is contingent.””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majoritye.g. Roth v. Karsten““Every remainder-man may die without issue before the death of the tenant for life. It is tlie present capacity of taking effect in possession, if the possession were to become vacant, and not the certainty, that the possession will become' vacant before the estate, limited in remainder, determines, that distinguishes a vested front a contingent, remainder. When the event, on which the VrcmTing estate is limited, must happen, and when it also may happen be fore the expiration of the estate limited in remainder, that remainder is vested.””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority““A devise to a person after the payment of debts and legacies is not contingent, until such debts and legacies are paid; such a devise confers an immediately vested interest; the words of apparent postponement are considered only as creating a charge. [Citations.]” Scofield, 120 Ill. at 376 , 11 N.E. at 355 .”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.