Lightner v. McCord’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

18 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 18 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““It has long been the established rule in this state that statutes regulating the manner of holding elections are merely directory and that a departure from their provisions will not invalidate an election unless such departure or irregularity has affected or changed the result of the election. While appellants exhibit an imposing list of irregularities in the manner in which the election officials conducted these elections, it is not shown nor even contended by appellants that any of them had the effect of falsifying' the result of either of the two elections that were held. It has many times been said by our courts that the objects of every popular election is to ascertain the will of the qualified electors in the area to be affected thereby upon the issue or issues submitted to them. Mere informalities that afford no just grounds for the conclusion that the will of the qualified electors has been in any manner thwarted, diverted or suppressed will not be considered of sufficient importance to render an election void. Especially does the rule apply in cases such as this where the record clearly shows that the will of a substantial majority of the electors in the district is reflected by the ultimate declarations of results and orders entered by the authorities charged with the duty of entering them. There is, therefore, no merit in these contentions of appellants and their assignments of error in respect thereto will be overruled. Hill v. Smithville Independent School Dist.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Stafford v. Stegle · Day v. Crutchfield

2. “In the matter of allowing amendment ... pending the trial in order to meet the proof, the trial judge should allow the amendment if it appears that the new matter contained in it was not known to the party seeking to file the same or, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, he could have ascertained the same when his former pleadings were filed, and that it does not involve new issues or inject into the case new matters which would interfere with the orderly progress of the court’s docket or work injustice upon other parties ... However, ... when it appears that the new matter was known to the party seeking to file the amendment, or to his counsel, or, by exercising reasonable diligence, it could have been known ... at such time as would have enabled them to include it in his former pleadings, or if it injects new matter ... the request should be denied.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Wendell v. Central Power and Light Co.