Murphy v. Godwin’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 district · 13 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 16 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Although it is well known that physicians usually accommodate patients by filling in the forms required by them for various reasons connected with insurance, the question of a doctor’s legal duty toward his patients with respect to completing insurance forms is apparently novel. The existence of such a duty may be found, however, by reference to established tort theory and recognized incidents of the doctor-patient relationship . . . “Liability for negligent nonfeasance may be found to exist where there is some already existing and definite relationship between the parties ‘of such a character that social policy justifies the imposition of a duty to act.’ Prosser, supra, §56 at p. 339. A relationship of that character exists when the party to be held hable has by some foregoing voluntary act brought himself into a relationship with others from which he obtains or expects benefits. See McNiece and Thornton, Affirmative Duties in Tort, 58 Yale L.J. 1272 (1949). “. . . if a doctor-patient relationship is shown to exist, it must have given rise to a duty of reasonable care in the disposition of the form . . . “In the absence of special circumstances it was [the doctor’s] duty to recognize his unique position as the treating physician who alone could comply with the insurance requirement without the expense and delay of a further examination. Upon actual receipt of the form, he was under a duty to exercise reasonable care in the disposition of the form. He might discharge that du”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Asen v. Fallows · Doe 30's Mother v. Bradley

2. “If a plaintiff opposing defendant’s motion for summary judgment has had fair opportunity to explore the defendant’s subjective state of mind and yet cannot point to anything tangible which indicates that the defendant had [culpable intent], plaintiff cannot prevail and the defense motion must be granted.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Gilbert v. El Paso Co.