47 Va. App. 287 - Irwin v. Irwin’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

10 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 10 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““construe the contract made by the parties, not to make a contract for them. The question for the court is what did the parties agree to as evidenced by their contract. The guiding light in the construction of a contract is the intention of the parties as expressed by them in the words they have used, and courts are bound to say that the parties intended what the written instrument plainly declares.””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 59 Va. App. 527 - James Carlton Craig, Jr. v. Thelma Ruth Markham Craig · 53 Va. App. 38 - Stacy v. Stacy

2. “The purpose of the legislative enactment of Code § 20-107.3(E)(4) was “to protect the interests of pension recipients from the unintended consequences of improperly or incomplete drafted pension orders....” Report of the Family Law Section of the Virginia State Bar on Equitable Distribution of Property in Divorce Proceedings, House Document No. 19, at 15-16 (1991). The statutory reservation permits “the court to revise its orders to comply with language required by federal law to effectuate the intended pension award, but not to substantively change the pension award itself.” Id. The House document recognized that “the integrity and enforceability of such pension division orders, and the receipt by the spouse of such award in the future, relies on the present proper drafting of such orders in order to comply with applicable federal law.” Id. Reservation of jurisdiction is necessary for “the future performance of such orders, and the receipt by spouse of [his or her] expected pension awards....” Id.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 59 Va. App. 527 - James Carlton Craig, Jr. v. Thelma Ruth Markham Craig