Neilson v. Alberty’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 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 7 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Does, therefore, this statute contemplate the attaching of a judgment lien to the surplus lands of such citizen upon the. issuance of such certificate? If not, the judg ment of the court below should be affirmed. Obviously the first provision authorizing a member of the tribe to whom a certificate of ■ competency has been issued to sell and convey her surplus lands cannot be construed to mean that said lands may be subjected to a lien created by operation of law. The latter clause, which provides that, upon the issuance of the certificate of competency,' a member shall have the right to manage, control, and dispose of her lands the same as any citizen of the United States, it is contended by plaintiff in error, placed the defendant in error upon exactly the same footing in1 respect to her surplus allotment as any United States citizens owning land. We are unable to agree with this contention, and submit that the words employed cannot be extended by any known rule of construction so as to authorize the attching to the lands of a lien created by statute, not the result of ■the voluntary act of the allottee.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Snyder v. Worten

2. ““It will thus be seen that the homestead allotment shall be and remain inalienable and nontaxable for a period of 25 years or during the life of the homestead al-lottee, while the surplus lands are made inalienable for 25 years, except as in said act provided; the provision referred to being the issuance to the allottee of a certificate of competency. In other words, that without the issuance of a certificate of competency no alienation, voluntary or involuntary, could be made of said lands, at least during the lifetime of the allottee; that the lands were not subject to either alienation or incumbrance of any kind or in any form. Any authority, therefore, for the transition of title, the creation of a lien or incumbrance, or any act of commission or omission that would, in any wise, affect the title of the living allottee must be found in the seventh paragraph of said section, authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to issue certificates of competency to adult members of the'tribe.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Gray v. Deal

3. ““To get at the thought or meaning expressed in a statute, a contract, or a constitution, the first resort, in all cases, is to .the natural signification of the words, in the order of grammatical arrangement in which the framers of the instrument have placed them. If the words convey ■ a definite meaning which involves no absurdity, * * * then that meaning, apparent on the face of the instrument, must be accepted, and neither the courts nor the Legislature have the right to add to it or take from it.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Leahy v. Indian Territory Illuminating Oil Co.