Roche v. Roche’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

86 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 87 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““It is of no significance that the court awarded the bare legal ‘control’ of the child to both parents. The essential thing in which a parent is interested is the physical control and care of the child, which here was awarded to the paternal grandparents. The policy above declared may not be thwarted by the artifice of giving a fit parent bare legal control while denying actual physical care and custody.””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 72 Cal. App. 2d 129 - Robertson v. Robertson · 217 Cal. App. 2d 535 - Morgan v. Morgan

2. “by what appears to be the best interest of the child in respect to its temporal and mental and moral welfare.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Guardianship of Smith · Guardianship of Casad

3. “In the case of Stever v. Stever, 6 Cal.2d 166 [ 56 P.2d 1229 ], this court held that section 197 of the Civil Code should be construed with subdivision 1 of section 246 of said code (now section 1406 of the Probate Code) and they contemplate that the natural right of a parent to the care of a minor child, if a fit and proper person, shall prevail as against an entire stranger, the law presuming, in the absence of other evidence or findings showing the contrary, that either parent is a proper person to whom the minor's care should be awarded. ...”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Navarro v. Hull