Patterson v. Rossignol’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

56 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 56 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “(1) the need for stability of verdicts; (2) the need to conclude litigation and desire to prevent any prolongation thereof; (3) the need to protect jurors in their communications to fellow jurors made in the confidence of secrecy of the jury room; (4) the need to save jurors harmless from tampering and harassment by disappointed litigants; (5) the need to foreclose jurors from abetting the setting aside of verdicts to which they may have agreed reluctantly in the first place or about which they may in the light of subsequent developments have doubts or a change of attitude.”

   7 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Watts · State v. Hurd

2. ““Evidence of what is said by jurors while deliberating upon a case will not be considered by the court to set aside the verdict.” Trafton v. Pitts, 1882, 73 Me. 408 . 2”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Aubut · State v. Leon

3. ““If jurors are conscious that they will be subjected to interrogation or searching hostile inquiry as to what occurred in the jury room and why, they are almost inescapably influenced to some extent by that anticipated annoyance. The courts will not permit that potential influence to invade the jury room. He who makes studied inquiries of jurors as to what occurred there acts at his peril, lest he be held as acting in obstruction of the administration of justice.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. C.N. Brown Co. v. Gillen