206 W. Va. 78 - Walker v. Meadows’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

8 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 8 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[t]he public duty doctrine is separate and distinct from the principle of immunity. It "does not rest squarely on the principle of governmental immunity, but rests on the principle that recovery may be had for negligence only if a' duty has been breached which was owed to the particular person seeking recovery.” Parkulo v. West Virginia Board of Probation and Parole., 199 W.Va. 161, 172 , 483 S.E.2d 507, 518 (1996), In other words, the public duty doctrine "is not based upon immunity from existing liability. Instead, it is based on absence of duty in the first instance.” Holsten v. Massey, 200 W.Va. 775, 782 , 490 S.E.2d 864, 871 (1997). Where the public duty doctrine would apply, there is simply no duty and therefore no need to inquire as to the existence of immunity. The public duty doctrine is not a "doctrine of governmental immunity but one of tort, based on the initial question applicable to any negligence action, that, is, whether the defendant owes the plaintiff any judicially cognizable duty.” Reno v. Chung, 220 Mich.App. 102 , 559 N.W.2d 308, 311 (1996) (Ludington, Judge, dissenting).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Dreama Bowden, Administratrix v. Monroe Co. Commission

2. “A political subdivision is immune from liability if a loss or claim results from: (1) Legislative or quasi-legislative functions; (9) Licensing powers or functions including, but not limited to, the issuance, denial, suspension or revocation of or failure or refusal to issue, deny, suspend or revoke any permit, license, certifícate, approval, order or similar authority!!.]”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 218 W. Va. 543 - Standard Distributing, Inc. v. City of Charleston