Merrick v. Merrick’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 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 6 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Where a judgment of a court wMch has jurisdiction of the subject-matter and of the parties is either erroneous or irregularly entered, but stands unreversed and unvacated, and with no attempt made to supersede, alter, or in any way reform it, it would seem clear, on principle, that an execution issued on it cannot be quashed on the ground of error or informality in the judgment. If the action of the court is presumptively valid, and error must be shown by a direct and appropriate proceeding, if no such error is shown, it is difficult to see why the presumption does not become conclusive. It is no hardship that a defendant should be concluded by a judgment of which he has not complained; and a contrary holding, to the effect that upon a motion to quash the execution a defendant might attack the judgment for error or irregularity, would indefinitely extend the time allowed for that purpose and unreasonably protract litigation.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Hammett v. Hatton