Knight v. Edwards’s Empirical Analysis
1954
Citation profile
21 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 23 later decisions — most recently November 1992
21 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Relies on Prather v. McClelland · Vance v. Upson · Green v. Dickson · De Galindo v. Garcia · Watts v. Farmer and Jensen
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 23 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““ ‘ * * * But to avoid a will because the testator entertained a delusion, the delusion must be an insane delusion, and the will must be the product thereof * * *. “ ‘ * * * The essence of an insane delusion is that it has no basis in reason, cannot be dispelled by reason, and can be accounted for only as the product of mental disorder. * * * “ ‘ * * * To constitute a delusion sufficient to invalidate a will, the subject matter must have no foundation in fact, for there is no such thing as a delusion founded upon facts. * * * ””
2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority“But the fact that there is evidence that Mrs.. Lockhart was laboring under a false belief or a delusion does not necessarily mean that there is evidence that she was the victim of an insane delusion. A delusion and an insane delusion as that term is defined in law, are altogether different mental conditions. 264 S.W.2d at 695 .”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority““ ‘ * * * Obviously, a testator need not always be right in his deductions in order to avoid being classed as insanely deluded. * * * One cannot be said to act under an insane delusion if his condition of mind results from an inference or a process of reasoning, however illogical, from facts which are shown to exist.’ ””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.