Railroad Company v. Howard’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

42 federal appellate · 14 district · 48 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 163 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““‘Equity regards the property of a corporation as held in trust for the payment of the debts of the corporation, and recognizes the right of creditors to pursue it into whosesoever possession it may be transferred, unless it has passed into the hands of a bona Me purchaser ; and the rule is well settled that stockholders are not entitled to any share of the capital stock nor to any dividend of the profits until all the debts of the corporation are paid. Assets derived from the sale of the capital stock of the corporation, or of its property, become, as respects creditors, the substitutes for the things sold, and as such they are subject to the same liabilities and restrictions as the things sold were before the sale and while they remained in the possession of the corporation. Even the sale of the entire capital stock of the company, and the division of the proceeds of the sale among the stockholders, will not defeat the trust nor impair the remedy of the creditors, if any debts remain unpaid, as the creditors in that event^-may pursue the consideration of the sale in the hands of the respective stockholders, and compel each one, to the extent of the fund, to contribute pro rata towards the payment of their debts out of the moneys so received and in their hands.””

   6 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Northern Pac. Ry. Co. v. Boyd · Central Improvement Co. v. Cambria Steel Co.

2. ““ Mortgage bondholders had a lien upon the property of the corporation embraced in their mortgages, and the corporation having neglected or refused to pay the bonds, they had a right to institute proceedings to foreclose the mortgages, but the equity of redemption remained in the corporation. Subject to their lien, the property of the railroad was in the mortgagors, and whatever interest remained after the lien of the mortgages was discharged belonged to the corporation; and as the property of the corporation when the bonds were discharged, it became a fund in trust for the benefit of their creditors. Holders of bonds secured by mortgage, as in this case, may exact the whole amount of the bonds, principal and interest, or they may, if they see fit, accept a percentage as a compromise in full discharge of their respective claims; but whenever their lien is legally discharged, the property embraced in the mortgage, or whatever remains of it, belongs to the corporation.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Hancock v. Toledo, Peoria & Warsaw R.

3. ““Equity regards the property of a corporation as held in trust for the payment of the debts of the corporation, and recognizes the right of creditors to pursue it into whosesoever possession it may be transferred, unless it has> passed into the hands of a bona fide purchaser; and the rule is well settled that the stockholders are not entitled to any share of the capital stock nor to any dividend of the profits until all the debts of the corporation are paid. Assets derived from the sale of the capital stock of the corporation, or of its property, become, as respects cred itors, the substitutes for the things sold, and, as such, they are subject to the same liabilities and restrictions as the things sold were before the sale, and while they remained in the possession of the corporation.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Union Coal Co. v. Wooley