Van Strien v. Jones’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

39 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 39 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “It is well settled that where in a will a testator's child is intentionally omitted or given $1.00 or any other sum, section 90 of the Probate Code is satisfied although the child is not mentioned by name.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 54 Cal. 2d 234 - Torregano v. Torregano · 157 Cal. App. 2d 380 - Estate of Fernstrom

2. “any person who if I died intestate would be entitled to share in my estate,”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 54 Cal. 2d 234 - Torregano v. Torregano · 193 Cal. App. 2d 471 - Estate of Sawyer

3. “'... it is not in the power of the court, from the will alone, to say whether the testator had a child living or not, or whether he ever had one. As to the children of the testator the will is a mere blank.' " (Quoting from Estate of Price, supra.) [22b] Directly applicable to the case under consideration is the rule that before a testator may be said to have intentionally omitted his child, it must appear on the face of the will that he had such child in mind at the time of executing the will, and having the child in mind he omitted to provide (see cases cited, supra, under par. 10). [30] If a jury may find from the facts herein that Torregano thought appellant dead, he could not be said to have had her in mind for the purpose of excluding her from his estate. One does not disinherit a deceased person. [31] Respondent argues that such an interpretation gives little or no effect to clause Thirteenth. We cannot agree. Clause Thirteenth is a typical clause intended to prevent contest. Under the construction of the will in this opinion the clause is given full effect as a no contest clause. Such a clause differs radically from a clause of disinheritance. The true disinheritance clause often fails to name a specific presumptive heir, and yet may be interpreted to exclude the same because of the use of words expressly indicating an intent to disinherit. Typical examples of general disinheritance clauses are: "I purposely leave nothing to anyone not mentioned in this will ...”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 54 Cal. 2d 234 - Torregano v. Torregano