Barker v. Barker’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

11 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 11 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““3. The law recognizes that a relationship known as a ‘confidential relation’ may exist between the parties to a transaction, where by reason of kinship or professional, business, social or family relations, ‘confidence is naturally inspired or, in fact, reasonably exists.’ “5. A confidential relation is not confined to any specific association of parties but applies generally to all persons who are associated by any relation of trust and confidence. * * * “7. Where a person obtains the legal title to property by such arts or acts or circumstances of circumvention, imposition, or fraud, or by virtue of a confidential relation and influence under such circumstances that he ought not, according to the rules of equity and good conscience as administered in chancery, to hold and enjoy the beneficial interest of the property, courts of equity, in order to administer justice between the parties, will raise a trust by construction out of such circumstances or relations; and this trust they will fasten upon the conscience of the offending party and will convert him into a trustee of the legal title, and order him to hold it or to execute the trust in such manner as to protect the rights of the defrauded party and promote the safety and interests of society.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Wildfang-Miller Motors, Inc. v. Miller

2. ““While a confidential or fiduciary relationship does not in itself give rise to a constructive trust, an abuse of confidence rendering the acquisition or retention of property by one person unconscionable against another suffices generally to ground equitable relief in the form of the declaration and enforcement of a constructive trust, and the courts are careful not to limit the rule or the scope of its application by a narrow definition of fiduciary or confidential relationships protected by it. An abuse of confidence within the rule may be an abuse of either a technical fiduciary relationship or of an informal relationship where one person trusts in and relies upon another, whether the relation is a moral, social, domestic, or merely personal one.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Wildfang-Miller Motors, Inc. v. Miller

3. “Ordinarily, business transactions between a husband and wife will be deemed to be within the rule of confidential relations[.]”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. In Re Estate of Smid