Johnson v. Parsons’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 federal appellate · 11 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 14 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““ . . . this court has in certain cases reviewed questions of law both on motion for a new trial and on appeal, even though exceptions were not taken. State v. Wright, 128 Me. 404 , 148 A. 141 ; State of Maine v. Mosley, 133 Me. 168 , 175 A. 307 ; Trenton v. Brewer, 134 Me. 295 , 186 A. 612 ; Springer v. Barnes, 137 Me. 17 , 14 A.2d 503 ; Megquier v. DeWeaver, 139 Me. 95 , 27 A.2d 399 , and Cox v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 139 Me. 167 , 28 A.2d 143 . “Such review, however, is not compatible with best practice, and although there be error in an instruction, when no exception is taken, a new trial either on appeal or motion should not be granted unless, as stated in the above-cited cases, ‘error in law * * * was highly prejudicial * * * and well calculated to result in injustice,’ or ‘injustice would otherwise inevitably result,’ or ‘the instruction was so plainly wrong and the point involved so vital * * * that the verdict must have been based upon a misconception of the law,’ or ‘When it is apparent from a review of all the record that a party has not had that impartial trial to which under the law he is entitled * * * .’ We consider the foregoing applicable as well to an omission as to an erroneous instruction where no exception is taken. State v. Smith, 140 Me. 255, 285, 286 , 37 A.2d 246, 259 . “This rule has been applied in civil as well as criminal cases. Pierce v. Rodliff, 95 Me. 346 , 50 A. 32 ; Emery v. Fisher, 128 Me. 453 , 148 A. 677 ; . . . ” 135 A.2d at 277-278 ”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Neal v. Bowes · Horner v. Flynn

2. ““manifest error in law in the judge’s charge to the jury . . . where as a result thereof, injustice results,””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Horner v. Flynn