Stephens v. Branker’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

9 federal appellate · 1 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 15 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In order to prevail on a conflict claim, a habeas petitioner must establish, under the second prong of Cuyler, that the actual conflict of interest compromised his attorney’s representation. This occurs when an attorney takes action for one client that is necessarily adverse to another, or when an attorney fails to take action for one client for fear of injuring another. In analyzing this issue, we use the three-factor test described in Mickens v. Taylor[, 240 F.3d 348, 361 (4th Cir.2001), aff'd, 535 U.S. 162 [ 122 S.Ct. 1237 , 152 L.Ed.2d 291 ] (2002) ]: First, the petitioner must identify a plausible alternative defense strategy or tactic that his defense counsel might have pursued. Second, the petitioner must show that the alternative strategy or tactic was objectively reasonable under the facts of the case known to the attorney at the time of the attorney’s tactical decision. [To demonstrate objective reasonableness,] the petitioner must show that the alternative strategy or tactic was clearly suggested by the circumstances. Finally, the petitioner must establish that the defense counsel’s failure to pursue that strategy or tactic was linked to the actual conflict.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. Gonzales v. State