Biddlecomb v. Haydon’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 federal appellate · 14 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 19 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “1‘ The rule of res ipsa loquitur does not apply unless the instrumentality causing the injury is shown to have been under the exclusive control or management of the one sought to be charged with responsibility therefor. -Neither does it apply where the cause of the accident is unexplained and might have been due to one of several causes for some of which the defendant is not responsible. (Brown v. Board of Trustees, 41 Cal. App. 100 [ 182 P. 316 ]; Olson v. Whitthorne & Swan, 203 Cal. 206 [ 263 P. 518 , 58 A.L.R. 129 ].) In Scellars v. Universal Service, 68 Cal.App. 252 [ 228 P. 879 ], the court quotes with approval from the case of Lucid v. E. I. DuPont etc. Powder Co., 199 F. 377 [ L.R.A. 1917E 182 , 148 C.C.A. 16 ], where the court said: ‘The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur involves an exception to the general rule that negligence must be affirmatively shown, and is not to be inferred, and the doctrine is to be applied only when the nature of the accident itself, not only supports the inference of the defendant’s negligence, but excludes all others.’ ...””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 87 Cal. App. 2d 106 - Cunningham v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co.