Ames v. Ames’s Empirical Analysis
1902
Citation profile
38 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 38 later decisions — most recently September 1959 · most notably Miller v. Bush (1908), In Re Will of Robert Carr (1927)
38 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Relies on Coffin v. Coffin · Peck v. . Cary · Gilbert v. . Knox · Heirs of Clark v. Ellis · Chrisman v. Cherisman
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 38 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““The rule is settled in this state that if a testator at the time he executes his will understands the business in which he is engaged, and has a knowledge of his property, and how he wishes to dispose of it among those entitled to his bounty, he possesses sufficient testamentary capacity, notwithstanding his old age, sickness, debility of body, or extreme distress.””
2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majoritye.g. Collins v. Long · Johnson v. Helmer““Every will shall be in writing, signed by the testator, or by some other person under his direction, in his presence, and shall be attested by two or more competent witnesses, subscribing their names to the will, in the presence of the testator.””
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majoritye.g. Johnson v. Helmer
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.