Fred Keeney v. Comptroller of the State of New York’s Empirical Analysis
222 U.S. 525 · 1912
Citation profile
8 federal appellate · 24 district · 83 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 218 later decisions (71 by the Supreme Court) — most recently August 1967 · most notably Royster Guano Co v. Commonwealth of Virginia (1920), Nichols v. Coolidge (1927)
8 federal appellate · 24 district · 83 state decisions — followed in 21 states
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Relies on Yick Wo v. Hopkins · Lindsley v. Natural Carbonic Gas Co. · Mugler v. State of Kansas State of Kansas Tufts · Barbier v. Connolly · Ex parte Virginia
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 218 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““But, if any such distinction could be made between taxing a right and taxing a privilege, it would not avail plaintiffs in the present ease. There is no natural right to create artificial and technical estates with limitations over, nor has the remainderman any more right to succeed to the possession of property under such deeds than legatees and devisees under a will. The privilege of acquiring property by such an instrument is as much dependent upon the law as that of acquiring property by inheritance, and transfers by deed to take effect at death, have frequently ‘been classed with death duties, legacy and inheritance taxes. Some statutes go further than that of New York, and tax gratuitous acquisitions under marriage settlements, trust conveyances, or other instruments where the transfer of property takes effect upon the death, not merely of the grantor, but of any person whomsoever.””
3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority““It imposes a tax on transfers by descent, or will, which take effect at the death of the testator; and then a tax upon transfers made in contemplation of death. It was but logical to take the next step, and tax transfers intended to take effect at or after the death of the grantor — even though that event was not actually impending when the deed was signed.””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority““There can be no arbitrary and unreasonable discrimination. But when there is a difference it need not be great or conspicuous in order to warrant classification.””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.