VanCollom v. Johnson’s Empirical Analysis
1984
Citation profile
21
cited by 21 later decisions
3
states following
June 1999
most recently cited
5 federal appellate · 16 state decisions
Relationships
Relies on Amusement Slides Corp. v. Lehmann · 119 W. Va. 215 - Hunn v. Windsor Hotel Co. · Arrington, Adm'r v. Graham, Adm'r · Landes v. Arehart
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 21 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“The plaintiff was forced to react, in a split second, to dispose of the source of the fire, thereby preventing injury to her mother and preventing damage to the dwelling as well as its contents. Certainly, there was an alternative course of conduct available to the plaintiff. She could have disregarded the blaze and ushered her mother to safety outdoors to await arrival of firemen. Nevertheless, that was not a viable alternative that afforded full protection to person and property because, while avoiding injury to the home’s occupants, that choice could have resulted in substantial damage to property or complete destruction of the residence. Thus, paraphrasing the Restatement, the plaintiffs choice was not voluntary, as a matter of law, because the alternative course of conduct was one which she could not reasonably be required to accept. Stated differently, the plaintiff was compelled by a special exigency, making her choice not voluntary.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority“A Railroad negligently sets a fire on its right of way, which burns toward B’s house. In order to save the house[,] B attempts to extinguish the fire, although he knows that there is a risk that he may be burned in doing so. B does not assume the risk.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority“[A]ssumption of risk (venturousness) ... has two requirements: 'the nature and extent of the risk must be fully appreciated and the risk must be voluntarily incurred.'”
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.