Jordan v. Westerman’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

45 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 45 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The power to decree alimony is statutory, and incident to the jurisdiction in suits for divorce, and the statute prescribes the entire powers and regulations on the subject. In fixing the amount and time of payment, the court is entitled to have all the facts which would influence its decision laid before it. Can it be supposed that the court would make an allowance to the wife of a gross sum for permanent alimony, to he paid by the husband out of his estate, if it was possessed of the fact that the wife had contracted to pay one-half or any other portion of what she should be awarded to her solicitor ? “Such contracts are against public policy for aüother reason. Public policy is interested in maintaining the family relation. The interests of society require that those relations shall not be lightly severed, and that families shall not be broken up for inadequate causes or from unworthy motives; and, where differences have arisen which threaten disruption, public welfare and the good of society demand a reconciliation, if practicable or possible. Contracts like the one in question tend directly to prevent such reconciliation, and, if legal and valid, tend directly to bring around alienation of husband and wife, by offering a strong inducement, amounting to a premium, to induce and advise the dissolution of the marriage ties, as a method of obtaining relief from real or fancied grievances which otherwise would pass unnoticed. The evil pointed out is well illustrated in this ”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. McCurdy v. Dillon