Flynn v. Beisel’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

30 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 30 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[Dedication rests upon intent and not upon prescription. It is the rule, laid down by this court, that, although there can be no dedication without the landowner’s intent, such requisite intent need not be express and in fact need not actually exist in the owner’s mind, but may be implied from acts and conduct of the owner which are unequivocally and convincingly indicative of dedication and upon which the public has a right to and does rely.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Henley v. County of Chisago · Barth v. Stenwick

2. ““* * * A public user may be established by a comparatively small number of persons. In this case plaintiff and all who have occupied the land have used the road as members of the public. The clear implication of the evidence is that the road has also at all times been open to any member of the public who had either the desire or the occasion for any purpose to call upon the occupants of plaintiff’s land. In addition, it is clear that the road was generally used in the past for the hauling of logs and later for the hauling of wood. The right of travel was enjoyed by the public generally. It is the right of travel by all the world, and not the exercise of the right, which constitutes a road a public highway, and the user by the public is sufficient if those members of the public — even though they be limited in number and even if some are accommodated more than others — who would naturally be expected to enjoy it do, or have done so, at their pleasure and convenience.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Bengtson v. Village of Marine on St. Croix

3. “Acceptance of a dedication may be shown by a user on the part of the public, as by travel, and where riparian rights are involved, devotion to public use, including various uses of recreational purposes such as sailing, rowing, fishing, bathing, skating, taking water for domestic, agricultural, and even city purposes, cutting ice and wood, hauling the same, and by other public purposes.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Barth v. Stenwick