Holman's Will’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

45 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 45 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The right of one’s absolute domination over his property is sacred and inviolable, so that he may do what he will with his own, if it is not to the injury of another. He may bestow it whithersoever he will and upon whomsoever he pleases, and this without regard to natural or legitimate claims upon his bounty; and if there exists no defect of donative capacity, whereby his individual will or judgment does not have intelligent and conscious play in the bestowal, or undue influence or fraud, whereby an unconscionable advantage may be taken of him through the wicked designs of another, the law will give effect to the disposition; and the right to dispose of one’s property by will, and bestow it upon whomsoever he likes, is a most valuable incident to ownership, and does not depend upon its judicious use * * * [citations]. And this court has held, in effect, that ‘while it seems harsh and cruel that a parent should disinherit one of his children and devise his property to others, or cut them all off and devise it to strangers, from some unworthy motive, yet so long as that motive, whether from pride or aversion or spite or prejudice, is not resolvable into mental perversion, no court can interfere’ * *”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Detsch v. Detsch, Administratrix · Turney v. Stone

2. ““The fraud, force or undue influence that will suffice to set aside a will must be such as to overcome the free volition or conscious judgment of the testator, and to substitute the wicked purposes of another instead, and must be the efficient cause, without which the obnoxious disposition would not have been made. This may be accomplished not alone by physical coercion or threats of personal harm or abuse, but also by the insidious operation of a stronger mind upon one weakened and impaired by disease or otherwise, whereby the latter is subjected to the former, and induced to do its bidding, instead of acting in the exercise of unconstrained volition or judgment. It is not all influence brought to bear upon the mind of the testator in the disposition of his property that may be denominated undue or fraudulent, as a friend or relative, or even those in confidential relation, may employ argument, or even persuasion to induce a bequest, so that notwithstanding it leaves the mind free to act upon its own considerations and judgment.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. In Re Kelly's Estate