Schwoyer v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

22 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 27 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “a. Rationale. An easement created by implication arises as an inference of the intention of the parties to a conveyance of land. The inference is drawn from the circumstances under which the conveyance was made rather than from the language of the conveyance. To draw an inference of intention from such circumstances, they must be or must be assumed to be within the knowledge of the parties. The inference drawn represents an attempt to ascribe an intention to parties who had not thought or had not bothered to put the intention into words, or perhaps more often, to parties who actually had formed no intention conscious to themselves. In the latter aspect, the implication approaches in fact, if not in theory, crediting the parties with an intention which they did not have, but which they probably would have had had they actually foreseen what they might have foreseen from information available at the time of the conveyance. In determining implications of this character, the tendency is to isolate and to assign a specific value to such factors as frequently recur. Thus, it may be said that where the factor of necessity exists a particular implication arises. Properly, however, the implication involves a consideration of all the factors present. They are variables rather than absolutes. None can be given a fixed value. Each affects the decision as to the implication arising from all in a different degree in different situations.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 413 Pa. Super. 1 - Mann-Hoff v. Boyer

2. “The mortgage is, of course (inter alia), a security device for the protection of the mortgagee’s interest as a creditor. For this reason, when a mortgage is of record, the mortgagor, although in possession, can pass out of himself no title or interest to the prejudice of the mortgagee. Patently, the mortgage security includes the value of any easement appurtenant to the mortgaged property. If, therefore, in the case before us, the Rahns took title to the dominant tract, and executed a mortgage upon it before acquiring the servient land, then as to the mortgagee, and his successors in interest, the easement would continue to exist; otherwise, the mortgage security would be impaired.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Pergament v. Loring Properties, Ltd.

3. “[I]f either a dominant or servient tenement held in fee is subject to a power of termination or to an executory interest, and the fee ownership of the dominant tenement is united with the fee ownership of the ser-vient tenement, the power of termination or the executory interest remains unaffected by such unity. Accordingly, if the power of termination or the executory interest becomes possessory, the possessory estate is entitled to the benefit, or remains subject to the burden, of the easement.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Pergament v. Loring Properties, Ltd.