Skinner v. Brown’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

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. “'If the intent of Congress is clear, that is the end of the matter'”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Karen Gordon v. R. James Nicholson · Holliday v. Principi

2. “The statute imposes no time restrictions on entitlement; it mandates payment of benefits for each month a covered survivor meets the statutory requirements. The VA’s regulations to the contrary conflict with the statute’s plain meaning. Because the plain meaning of the REPS statute shows that Congress did not intend to condition REPS benefits on time specific filing requirements, we need not consider the statute’s legislative history. Darby v. Cisneros, 509 U.S. 137 , 113 S.Ct. 2539 , 125 L.Ed.2d 113 ... (1993). Even if we choose to look to that history, however, “only the most extraordinary showing of contrary intentions” would lead us to disregard the plain meaning of the statute. Garcia v. United States, 469 U.S. 70 , 105 S.Ct. 479 , 83 L.Ed.2d 472 ... (1984). The Secretary has made no such showing here.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Lee v. West

3. “It may be unusual that Congress chose not to tie [Restored Entitlement Program for Survivors] payments to the same time restrictions that applied under the Social Security Act, but it is hardly absurd to conclude, as the government suggests, that it meant to do so under these circumstances given the plain statutory language.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. William H. Wanless, Jr. v. Anthony J. Principi