Flint v. Gilpin’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

12 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 12 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Marriage is undoubtedly a civil contract, because consent is necessary to its legal validity, but in its nature, attributes and distinguishing features it is sui generis. It is declared a civil contract for certain purposes, but it is not thereby made synonymous with the word ‘contract’ employed in the common law or statutes. It may be entered into by persons during their minority, and cannot When consummated, be dissolved by the parties. It is more than a contract. It requires certain acts of the parties to constitute marriage, independent of and beyond the contract. It partakes more of the character of an institution regulated and controlled by public authority, upon principles of public policy, for the benefit of the community. The relation of the parties is essentially personal. Neither the rights, duties, nor obligations created by or flowing from it can be transferred, and an action for a breach of promise to marry, in its main features, has ' very little resemblance to other contracts. In the latter the damages are limited by fixed rules to the pecuniary loss sustained, while in the former the damages are in the discretion of the jury to the same extent that they are in strictly personal actions, such as slander, malicious prosecution, assault and.battery and the like; and the recovery may be, and usually is, principally for injured feelings, -anxiety of mind, wounded pride and blighted affections. In the one case the motives for the violation or breach are immaterial”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Warner v. Benham