Barnwell v. ELLIOTT’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

7 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 9 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “It is elementary that negligence may be established by circumstantial evidence. Thornton v. Seaboard Air Line Ry. Co., 98 S.C. 348 , 82 S.E. 433 ; Watson v. Coxe Bros. Lumber Co., 203 S.C. 125 , 26 S.E.2d 401 . And in considering the sufficiency of such evidence, “the facts and circumstances shown should be reckoned with in the light of ordinary experience and such conclusions deduced therefrom as common sense dictates.” Leek v. New South Express Lines, 192 S.C. 527 , 7 S.E.2d 459, 462 . The fact that the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur is not applied in this jurisdiction does not mean that negligence may not be established by circumstantial evidence as .well as direct evidence. Eickhoff v. Beard-Laney, Inc., 199 S.C. 500 , 20 S.E.2d 153 , 141 A.L.R. 1010 . It is also important to bear in mind that the fact that an injury may have been caused in one of two or more ways does not preclude recovery, “if the facts and circumstances in evidence warrant a reasonable inference that it was caused in any way alleged in the complaint for which the master would be liable.” Steele v. Atlantic Coast Line R. Co., 103 S.C. 102 , 87 S.E. 639, 643 .”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 572 F. Supp. 659 - Denaux v. United States