Vaughan v. Eastern Edison Co.’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

37 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. “[d]uty is an allocation of risk determined by balancing the foreseeability of harm, in light of all the circumstances, against the burden to be imposed.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 967 So. 2d 259 - Kazanjian v. Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach County · 910 So. 2d 405 - Biglen v. Florida Power & Light Co.

2. “"Duty is an allocation of risk determined by balancing the foreseeability of harm, in light of all the circumstances, against the burden to be imposed." [ White, 25 Cal.App.4th at 447 , 30 Cal.Rptr.2d 431 .] The capacity to bear or distribute loss is a factor to consider in allocating the risk. See [W. PAGE KEETON, ET AL.,] Prosser & Keeton [ON THE LAW OF] Torts § 4, at 24 [5th ed.1984]. We appreciate that relieving the electric company of liability may leave the "loss on the shoulders of the individual plaintiff, who may be ruined by it." Ibid. "But the imposition of tort liability on those who must render continuous service of this kind to all who apply for it under all kinds of circumstances could [also] be ruinous and the expense of litigation and settling claims over the issue of whether or not there was negligence could be a greater burden to the rate payer than can be socially justified." [PROSSER & KEETON, TORTS § 93, at 671].”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 873 So. 2d 1182 - Clay Elec. Co-Op., Inc. v. Johnson · 798 So. 2d 778 - Levy v. Florida Power & Light Co.

3. “One who undertakes, gratuitously or for consideration, to render services to another which he should recognize as necessary for the protection of a third person ... is subject to liability to the third person for physical harm resulting from his failure to exercise reasonable care to protect his undertaking, if (a) his failure to exercise reasonable care increases the risk of such harm, or . . . (c) the harm is suffered because of reliance of the other or the third person upon the undertaking.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 873 So. 2d 1182 - Clay Elec. Co-Op., Inc. v. Johnson · 13 Mass. L. Rptr. 346 - Ruiz v. Pelson Realty Trust