Britton v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

20 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 20 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The requirements for plain error are that the record must be clear as to what happened at the trial level, the error must involve a clear rule of law, and the facts of the case must clearly violate the rule. Once these requirements are met, the appellant still bears the burden of showing that a substantial right was adversely affected. [Citations.] The plain error rule, as this court has stated many times, is to be applied sparingly and only in exceptional circumstances, [citations.] * * *” Britton v. State, Wyo., 643 P.2d 935, 937 (1982).”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Story v. State · Cutbirth v. State

2. ““ * * * No party may assign as error the giving or the failure to give an instruction unless he objects thereto before the jury retires to consider its verdict, stating distinctly the matter to which he objects and the grounds of his objection. * * * ””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Story v. State · Cutbirth v. State

3. “[p]lain errors or defects affecting substantial rights may be noticed although they were not brought to the attention of the court.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Gomez v. State