Norris v. Johnson’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

7 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. ““They [the members] become stockholders in these corporations voluntarily, and risk their money in them for expected gain to themselves, and with full knowledge of the nature and extent of the liability [which] the law says they shall assume in so doing. In this way credit is given to the corporation that contracts the debts, and, when debts are thus contracted, we see no objection to permitting any creditor to seek out any responsible stockholder, and sue him at law for the debt, and place on him the burden of proceedings in equity to obtain contribution from others equally liable with himself. The creditors, as amongst themselves, may here, as in other cases, be well left to a race of diligence in the recovery of their claims, especially when the extent of recovery as against any one stockholder is limited, and he can show that the limit has been reached, as a defense to any further suits. It is true, he may be thus compelled to pay more than his share, looking to the like responsibility of other stockholders, but for this he has his remedy in equity for contribution.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Knickerbocker Trust Co. v. Myers