Sweeny v. Hunter’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

15 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 17 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““If the defendant, Hunter, for the purpose of evading the exemption law of his own state, had gone in person into a West Virginia court, and there, in his own name commenced proceedings by attachment, for the purpose of thus enforcing payment of his claim (which he could not have done here), the plaintiff, independently of the Act of 1887, would have had a remedy in equity to restrain him from prosecuting such attachment against the wages of the defendant in the hands of his employer. That remedy would have been in the courts of this state by injunction against the attaching creditor, not by an order directed to the West Virginia Court. This principle appears to be recognized in Cole V. Cunningham, 133 U. S. 107 , where the subject is fully and ably discussed by the present Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. It is there held that in proper cases (such, we think, as that under consideration), the Constitution of the United States permits the equity courts of one state to control persons within their jurisdiction from prosecuting suits in another state, and that the exercise of that power is no violation of the constitutional provision which requires that full faith and credit be given in each state to the judicial proceedings of every other state.””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Zeiders v. Lewis Apparel Stores, Inc. · Prazich v. Alwine

2. ““ ‘But, although the courts of one country have no authority to stay proceedings in the courts of another, they have an undoubted authority to control all persons within their own territorial limits. When, therefore, both parties to a suit in a foreign country are resident within the territorial limits of another country, the courts of equity of the latter may act in personam upon those parties, and direct them by injunction to proceed no further in such suit. In such a case, these courts act upon the acknowledged principles of public law in regard to jurisdiction. They do not pretend to direct or control the foreign court, but, without regard to the situation of the subject matter of the dispute, they consider the equities between the parties, and decree in personam according to those equities . . .’ ””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Prazich v. Alwine

3. ““Provided, however, That the wages of any laborers, or the salary of any person in public or private employment, shall not be liable to attachment in the hands of the employer.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Prazich v. Alwine