First Trust Co. v. Varney’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 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 3 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““It will be noted the will provides specifically that this shall only be paid from the net income of the fund and is subject to the bequest to Doctor Varney. Had the testatrix intended the payments to Doctor Varney should be made out of income only surely she would have used the same language that was used in making provision for the poor. We shall gather the intention of the testatrix as nearly as possible from the written words of the will. We also call to our assistance, however, the surrounding facts and circumstances. The testatrix had spent her last days in the home of Doctor Varney. She evidently entertained a kindly feeling toward him. It is a fair assumption that she considered his welfare to be more important than that of the poor for whom she was providing. “When all these things are considered we do not have any difficulty in reaching a conclusion that the testatrix intended Doctor Varney should have $75 a month for the balance of his life, whether the income of the estate was sufficient to pay it or not.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 5 Wash. 2d 123 - Johnson v. McClure

2. ““ ‘A. I hereby expressly will and ordain that said trustee shall pay unto Dr. Franklin T. Varney, of Nau-voo, Illinois, the sum of seventy-five ($75) dollars per month during his life time. “ ‘B. I, the said testatrix, ... do hereby create this trust, to be known and called the Varney Charitable Fund for the worthy and needy poor of Wichita, and the net income of said money shall be used for the benefit of said worthy and needy poor of the city of Wichita, . . . subject to the above bequest to Dr. Franklin T. Varney.’ ””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 5 Wash. 2d 123 - Johnson v. McClure