McCord v. Green’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 district · 11 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 14 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The doctrine of avoidable consequences [also known as mitigation of damages] is to be distinguished from the doctrine of contributory negligence. Generally, they occur — if at all — at different times. Contributory negligence occurs either before or at the time of the wrongful act or omission of the defendant. On the other hand, the avoidable consequences generally arise after the wrongful act of the defendant. That is, damages may flow from the wrongful act or omission of the defendant, and if some of these damages could reasonably have been avoided by the plaintiff, then the doctrine of avoidable consequences prevents the avoidable damages from being added to the amount of damages recoverable.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Foster v. George Washington University Medical Center

2. “"`Unfortunately, the use of occupant restraints has traditionally been low in this country. Even now, the average use rate for cars of all model years is about 5 percent for lap and shoulder belts and 25 percent for lap belts alone.' "To characterize plaintiff's behavior in this case as lacking in ordinary prudence would be paradoxical, as it did not differ from that of 75% of the motorists in this country with respect to the use of seat belts." 362 A.2d at 725 . (Citation omitted.) See also, Romankewiz v. Black (1969), 16 Mich. App. 119 , 167 N.W.2d 606, 609 , and Nash v. Kamrath, supra, 521 P.2d at 163-64 .”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Kopischke v. First Continental Corp.

3. “With all deference to the New York Court of Appeals, however, we do not deem this rule applicable to cases like Spier or the instant one, for it assumes that the trier of fact may attach significance to purely fortuitous events in which the chain of causation may be discerned only by hindsight. The doctrine of avoidable consequences . . . comes into play only after the defendant has committed the wrongful act but at a time when plaintiff still has an opportunity to avoid the consequences in whole or in part. Surely the situation before us does not fall into that category ____”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Welsh v. Anderson