Scott v. Kirkham’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

4 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 4 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The rule is a just and familiar one that a marketable title is one which is free from reasonable doubt; and under this rule a title is doubtful and therefore unmarketable if it exposes the party holding it to the hazard of litigation. (McNutt v. Nellans, 82 Kan. 424 , 108 Pac. 834 ; Williams v. Bricker, 83 Kan. 53 , 109 Pac. 998 , 30 L. R. A., n. s., 343; Howe v. Coates, 97 Minn. 385 , 4 L. R. A., n. s., 1170.) “On the other hand, mere quibbles and pecadilloes which the ingenuity of counsel can raise against a title do not render it unmarketable. To what hazard of litigation did these titles expose their holder? None is suggested, and it is difficult to imagine any. In Maupin on Marketable Title to Real Estate (p. 708), frequently quoted by this court (as in Spaeth v. Kouns, 95 Kan. 320, 326 , 148 Pac. 651 ), it is said: “ ‘The defect of title of which the purchaser complains must be of a substantial character; one from which he may suffer injury. Mere immaterial defects which do not diminish in quantity, quality, or value the property contracted for, constitute no ground upon which he may reject the title. Facts must be known at the time which fairly raise a reasonable doubt as to the title; a mere possibility or conjecture that such a state of facts may be developed at some future time is not sufficient.’ ””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Peatling v. Baird