Glass v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

103 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 107 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “"The legislative direction that [civil service] classification `shall be provided by ordinance of the City Council', does not negate the right and power of the people to pass the classification ordinance. The legislature's use of the words `City Council or legislative body' is simple of explanation. All legislative powers conferred by statute on municipalities in this state are conferred on the `City Council' or `City Commission'. It is to be doubted that there exists anywhere in our statutes a provision that a given legislative power of a municipality may be exercised `by the people' or `through the initiative'. If it were held that legislative powers could not be exercised by the people through the iniative [sic] in all cases in which the statutes provide that they shall be exercised by the `City Council', the people would be shorn of all right to exercise any of the statutory powers conferred on municipal governments and the initiative would become an empty symbol * * *."”

   9 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Loos v. City of Houston · City of Laredo, Texas v. Laredo Merchants Association

2. ““ * * * respondents being otherwise entitled to have the initiative election called and held, cannot be defeated in that right by the refusal of petitioners to perform purely ministerial duties on the ground that in their opinion the ordinance would be invalid if adopted. * * But to entitle respondents to a writ of mandamus on the ground that they have a legal right to have the election called and held and that petitioners are under a legal duty to order and to hold it, it is not enough that the subject matter of the proposed ordinance be legislative in character but it must also appear that the subject matter of the ordinance has not been withdrawn from the field in which the initiatory process is operative.””

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. the City of Cleveland, Niki Coats, in His Official Capacity as Mayor of the City of Cleveland and Angela Smith, in Her Official Capacity as City Secretary of the City of Cleveland v. Keep Cleveland Safe · Vara v. City of Houston

3. “Once the people have properly invoked their right to act legislatively under valid initiative provisions of a city charter and the subject matter of the proposed ordinance is legislative in character and has not been-withdrawn or excluded by general law or the charter, either expressly or by necessary implication, from the operative field of initiative, members of the City Council and other municipal officers should be' compelled by the courts to perform their ministerial duties so as to permit the legislative branch of the municipal government to function to the full fruition of its product, though that product may later prove to be unwise or even invalid.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. the City of Cleveland, Niki Coats, in His Official Capacity as Mayor of the City of Cleveland and Angela Smith, in Her Official Capacity as City Secretary of the City of Cleveland v. Keep Cleveland Safe