Stith v. Willis’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 district · 3 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. “"Although 'in a proper case, where a valid contract to adopt another is breached, the injured party may enforce the contract by suit for specific performance and obtain a decree that he is entitled to have the same benefits from the defaulting parties’ estate that would have been his if the contract had been performed and a legal adoption had, according to the terms of the contract,’ 'the unfulfilled contract to adopt another does not confer upon such person the status of the adopted child of the parties who break the promise nor operate to constitute him the heir at law of the promisor.’ ” Stith v. Willis, 219 Ga. 62, 64 ( 131 SE2d 620 ). Accord, Winder v. Winder, 218 Ga. 409, 411 ( 128 SE2d 56 ). In short, "virtual adoption is not adoption” (Baker v. Henderson, 208 Ga. 698, 702 ( 69 SE2d 278 )) and would not serve to create a parent-child relation between the appellants in this case. Limbaugh v. Woodall, 121 Ga. App. 638, 641 ( 175 SE2d 135 ).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Tellis v. Saucier

2. “A court of equity has no power to grant the special prayer: `That your petitioner be declared by the court to be the child and heir at law of J. J. Collins and Lizzie Collins, both deceased.'”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 121 Ga. App. 638 - Limbaugh v. Woodall