White v. Fowler’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

26 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 26 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““It is noted that there is in this will no survivorship as a condition to the rights of his ‘heirs’ as devisees. When there is an estate devised, with a limitation over to testator’s heirs or others, depending on the contingency that the prior devisee shall die without issue, or that such ‘heirs’ or others shall survive the devisee, the question of whether those who were such ‘heirs’ of testator at the time of his death took a vested remainder or one contingent on surviving the first taker after testator’s death has given rise to much discussion in this State. (Citations Omitted) “Those cases show that the question has been fully settled that ‘words of survivorship in a will, unless there is manifest intent to the contrary, always relate to the death of the testator.’ Alexander v. Alexander, supra [ 239 Ala. 76 , 193 So. 736 ], “Those cases proceed on the theory that a will speaks as of the date of the death of the testator, and survivorship therefore is as of that date unless a contrary intent is apparent in the form of the will itself, or the surroundings of testator material in that respect.” White v. Fowler, 245 Ala. 209, 211 , 16 So.2d 399, 400 .”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Weil v. Converse

2. “"[T]he only question before us is to determine the meaning of the last sentence in item three of the will in the following language: `And after the death or marriage of the last one of my daughters as herein above mentioned (that is, the three named as being then unmarried) then shall my estate both personal and real descend to my heirs in common.' At the time of the death of the last of three who were not then married, September 8, 1936, some of the other sisters had died and left heirs, but all six survived the testator. The question is whether the will vested a remainder in the sisters effective in interest at the time of the death of the testator, or whether such interest was contingent upon them being alive and an heir of the testator at the time the last of the three unmarried sisters should lose her prior possessory right. The court held that the remainder vested in all the six daughters at the time of the death of testator. In this we concur.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 460 So. 2d 153 - McLean v. Brasfield

3. “"We have here (we repeat) no provision for survivorship, expressed in the will. It provides for the testator's `heirs,' but not conditioned upon survival at any time. The will is that the testator's `heirs' are to have his property at the end of the preceding particular period."”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 460 So. 2d 153 - McLean v. Brasfield