Donovan v. Major’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 32 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 34 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““ ‘As held by the courts of this country, the doctrine is that a person once found to be alive is presumed to continue to live until there be proof of the contrary. At the end of seven years from the time he was last heard of, the presumption of life ceases and the opposite presumption of death takes its place. The legal presumption, as we understand from the decisions quoted by appellee, establishes, not only the fact of death, but also the time at which the person shall first be accounted dead. ' This is an arbitrary presumption, but rendered necessary on grounds of public policy, in order that rights depending upon the life or death of persons long absent and unheard of may be settled by some certain rule’— Whiting v. Nicoll, [ 46 Ill. 230 , 92 Am. Dec. 248 ]. The conclusion to be drawn from the record, in accordance with this presumption, is that Will C. Wright is to be regarded as dead on the 15th day of April, 1900, and not before, unless evidence of facts and circumstances appear sufficient to justify the inference that he died at an earlier date.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Gaffney v. Royal Neighbors of America