State v. Picotte’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

27 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 29 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[Wlhen a court of last resort intentionally takes up, discusses, and decides a question germane to, though not necessarily decisive of, the controversy, such decision is not a dictum, but is a judicial act of the court which it will thereafter recognize as a binding decision.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. John Doe 56 v. Mayo Clinic Health System - Eau Claire Clinic, Inc. · Zarder Ex Rel. Menard v. Humana Insurance

2. “We can ascertain no valid justification for protecting a release from being opened while stipulations are subject to equitable relief. Both methods are commonly used to terminate litigation. Therefore, for the purposes of a motion under § 806.07(1), we consider a release and a stipulation to dismiss a claim one and the same. We need not consider the effect of the nearly $76,000 Western has paid the Mullins until they recover less than that amount from Western. By the Court. — Order reversed. All references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2001-02 version unless otherwise noted.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Sukala v. Heritage Mutual Insurance

3. “The Blackstonian doctrine is based on the jurisprudential theory that 'courts declare but do not make law. In consequence, when a decision is overruled, it does not merely become bad law, — it never was the law, and the later pronouncement is regarded as the law from the beginning.'”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Heritage Farms, Inc. v. Markel Insurance