Ex parte Collins’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

130 federal appellate · 69 district · 1 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 399 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “a limited class of cases of special importance”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Phillips v. United States · Gold v. Lomenzo

2. ““This suit is not one to restrain ‘the enforcement, operation, or execution’ of a statute of a state within the meaning of section 266. That section was intended to embrace a limited class of cases of special importance and requiring special treatment in the interest of the public. The lower courts have held with substantial unanimity that the section does not govern all suits in which it is sought to restrain the enforcement of legislative action, but only those in which the object of the suit is to restrain the enforcement of a statute of general application or the order of a state board of commission. Thus, the section has long been held inapplicable to suits seeking to enjoin the execution of municipal ordinances, or the orders of a city board. And likewise it has been held that the section does not apply where, as here, although the constitutionality of a statute is challenged, the defendants are local officers and the suit involves matters of interest only to the particular municipality or district involved. Despite the generality of the language, we think the section must be so construed. “Congress realized that, in requiring the presence of three judges, of whom one must be a Justice of this court or a Circuit Judge, it was imposing a severe burden upon the federal courts. The burden was imposed because Congress deemed it unseemly that a single District Judge should have power to suspend legislation enacted by a state. That the section was intended to apply only to ca”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Tramel v. Schrader · International Paper Company v. Inhabitants of the Town of Jay Maine State of Maine

3. ““Thus, the section has long been held inapplicable to suits seeking to enjoin the execution of municipal ordinances, or the orders of a city board. And likewise it has been held that the section does not apply where, as here, although the constitutionality of a statute is challenged, the defendants are local officers and the suit involves matters of interest only to the particular municipality or district involved. Despite the generality of the lan guage, we think the section must be so construed.” ****** “That the provisions of section 266 (now Title 28, Section 2281, United States Code) applied to cases of unusual gravity was recognized by Congress in 1925, when, in limiting the right of direct appeal from the district court to this court, it carefully preserved that right in cases falling within the section. Cases like the present are not of that character. If the temporary injunction had been issued, the result would have been merely to delay a municipal improvement. Though here the alleged unconstitutionality rests in the enabling statute, the case does not differ substantially from one where the sole claim is that a city ordinance is invalid. Moreover, the enabling act is not itself being enforced within the meaning of Section 266. That act merely authorizes further legislative action to be taken by the city, as by the resolution here in question. It is that municipal action, not the statute of a state, whose ‘enforcement, operation, or execution’ the petitioner seeks t”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Aberdeen Cable TV Service, Inc. v. City of Aberdeen · 232 F. Supp. 563 - Johnson v. Genesee County, Michigan