Hilton v. Sullivan’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

88 federal appellate · 15 district · 2 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 163 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““In any reduction in personnel in any civilian service of any Federal agency, competing employees shall be released in accordance with Civil Service Commission regulations which shall give due effect to tenure of employment, military preference, length of service, and efficiency ratings: Provided, That the length of time spent in- active service in the armed forces of the United States of each such employee shall be credited in computing length of total service * * (Emphasis added.)”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Barberi v. United States · Fitzpatrick v. Snyder

2. ““There is nothing ambiguous about this 1912 provision. It was an absolute command that no governmental department should discharge, drop, or reduce in rank any honorably discharged veteran government employee with a rating of ‘good.’ Length of service in- no way qualified the preference given the veteran. And subsequent executive orders not, only recognized this provision as giving veterans an absolute preference, but also extended the preference to veterans in the field service and to positions not under civil service. «* * * Consequently, a holding that veterans with a rating of ‘good’ no longer' have a retention preference over nonveterans with longer service, would mean that passage of the Veterans’ Preference Act in 1944 narrowed the long-existing scope of veterans’ preferences in case of reduction in force :of government personnel. The purpose of that Act’s sponsors and of Congress in passing it appears to have been precisely the opposite — to' broaden rather than narrow the preference.” 334 U.S. at pages 336-337, 68 S.Ct. at page 1026.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 91 F. Supp. 108 - Reeber v. Rossell

3. ““Provided, That in the event of reductions being made in the force in any of the executive departments no honorably discharged soldier or sailor whose record in said department is rated good shall be discharged or dropped or reduced in rank or salary.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Wettre v. Hague