Pike v. Megoun’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 federal appellate · 34 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 37 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““An action, then, does not lie against judges or magistrales, or persons acting judicially, in a matter within the scope of their jurisdiction, however erroneous their judgment, or corrupt and malicious their motives. But there is a limit to this judicial immunity. The civil remedy depends exclusively upon the nature of the dniy which lias been violated. When duties which are purely ministerial are cast upon officers whose chief functions are judicial, and the ministerial duty is violated, the officer, although for most purposes a judge, is still civilly responsible for such misconduct. And the same rule obtains where judicial functions are cast upon a ministerial officer. But to render a judge acting in a ministerial capacity, or a ministerial officer acting in a capacity in its nature judicial, liable, it must toe shown, that his decisions were not merely erroneous, but that lie acted from a spirit of willfulness, corruption, and malice; in oilier words, that Ms action was knowingly wrongful, and not according to his honest convictions in respect of Ms duty.” •”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Bailey v. Berkey

2. “the due execution of which depends upon his own judgment.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Yelton v. Becker