Ex Parte Jones’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

18 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 18 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The father has presented adequate evidence that his lifestyle and environment have radically improved. However, that alone is not enough. Under the standard of Ex parte McLendon, the father must clearly demonstrate by the preponderance of the evidence that a change of custody would materially promote the welfare of the child. According to McLendon, a natural parent has a prima facie right to the custody of his child. However, this presumption does not apply in a modification case such as this where a prior decree removed custody from the natural parent and awarded it to a non-parent. The McLendon case requires that a party seeking modification prove to the Court’s satisfaction that material changes affecting the child’s welfare since the last custody decree demonstrate that custody should be disturbed to materially promote the child’s best interest.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. C.C. v. A.G.

2. ““A natural parent has a prima facie right to the custody of his or her child. However, this presumption does not apply after a voluntary forfeiture of custody or a prior decree removing custody from the natural parent and awarding it to a non-parent.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 645 So. 2d 300 - W.B.Z. v. D.J.

3. “[t]he positive good brought about by the modification . . . more than offset[s] the inherently disruptive effect caused by uprooting the child.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Ex Parte Roberts