Grier v. Fox’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Under the law as it formerly stood, where the plea in abatement was found for defendant the whole proceeding was at an end, and plaintiff must commence a new action. Mow, the plea in abatement being disposed of, the suit may proceed, but as if commenced by summons alone.. If a suit were commenced by summons issued upon a petition which set out no cause of action, judgment upon demurrer must necessarily be for defendant. The question would not be whether the note or other demand sued on was due at the time of joinder in demurrer, but whether it was due at the time of the filing of the petition, which, under our practice, is the foundation of the action. The issue raised by the plea in abatement being out of the way in the case before us, and the case standing as any action commenced by summons, we see no reason why it should not be subjected to the ordinary rules governing such actions; nor why the plaintiff should be allowed any advantage because he has sworn, no matter how conscientiously, to his belief in the existence of a state of facts which is found not to have existed. When a man gives a promissory note, he has a right to suppose that, if by the chances of business and inevitable misfortune he cannot meet it at maturity, no process can issue to subject his property to forced sale to meet the obligation until judgment has-been obtained, in due course, upon a suit commenced to the return term next succeeding the maturity of the paper, unless he meanwhile leaves the stat”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Augir v. Foresman