Berman v. Berman’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 federal appellate · 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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““* * * § 11-326 of the District of Columbia Code (1951), 31 Stat. 1208 , provides that where a ‘decree only directs the payment of money no defendant shall be imprisoned except in those cases especially provided for.’ To find the bearing of this statute upon this case we must collate three other sections of the Code. ‘During the penden-cy of a suit for divorce’ § 16-410, 31 Stat. 1346 , 32 Stat. 537 , permits imprisonment for non-payment of ‘alimony’, i. e. ‘maintenance’, or of ‘counsel fees’. ‘When a divorce is granted’, § 16-411, 31 Stat. 1346 , permits payment of ‘permanent alimony sufficient for * * * support’ to be enforced ‘in the manner before mentioned’. This section says nothing about counsel fees. In a wife’s suit for separate support, § 16-415, 63 Stat. 213 , permits payment of ‘maintenance’ money, both ‘pendente lite and permanently,’ to be enforced ‘in the same manner as directed in regard to the payment of permanent alimony.’ But this section also says nothing about counsel fees. Since imprisonment for failure to pay a wife’s counsel fees incurred in a suit for separate support is not ‘especially provided for’ by statute, the appealed order is erroneous insofar as it orders appellant committed for such failure. * * * ””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Crawford v. Crawford