Denham v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““It cannot be dispúted that the fact that insurance papers bearing the name of W. H. Denham were found in the automobile was admissible as evidence on the issue of the identity of the driver, and since the driver was alone in the automobile there is some evidence of his identity. It is not disputed that the name W. H. Denham found on the insurance papers is the name of appellant, but the argument is that the fact standing alone was not sufficient evidence to show that he was the driver of the automobile. * * * * * * “Of course the burden of proof was on the appellee to establish that appellant was the driver of the automobile involved in the collision. Such proof is limited to the name found on the insurance papers and the fact that appellant did not testify and offered no evidence. Such failure lends probative force to the evidence that appellant’s name was found on the insurance papers in the automobile. 17 Tex.Jur., p. 306, Sec. 87. “The unexplained presence in the automobile of insurance papers bearing appellant’s name together with the fact that there was only one person in the automobile at the time of the collision is some evidence of the identity of the driver at the time. In the final analysis this evidence renders it more probable that appellant was such driver than that he was not. In this state of the record we think appellee’s proof was sufficient to sustain a finding that appellant was the driver of the automobile involved in the collision. 30 Tex. Jur. p. 597, ”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Pinson v. Busby ex rel. Busby