Treadwell v. Whittier’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

13 federal appellate · 164 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 183 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The same responsibility must attach to one controlling and running'an elevator. Persons who are lifted by elevators are subjected to great risk to life and limb. They are hoisted vertically, and are unable, in case of the breaking of machinery, to help themselves. The person running such elevator must be held to undertake to raise such persons safely, as far as human care and foresight will go. The law holds him to the utmost care and diligence of every cautious person, and responsible for the slightest neglect. Such responsibility attaches to all persons engaged in employments where human beings submit their bodies to their control by which then-lives or limbs are put at hazard, or where such employment is attended with danger to life or limb. The utmost care and diligence must be used by persons engaged in such employments to avoid injury to those they carry. The care and diligence required is proportioned to the danger to the persons carried. In proportion to the degree of danger to others must be the care and diligence to be exercised. Where the. danger is great, the utmost care and diligence must be employed. In such cases the law requires extraordinary care and diligence. >Ve know of no employment where the law should demand a higher degree of care and diligence than in the case of the persons using and running elevators for lifting human beings from one level to another. The danger of those being raised is great. When persons are injured by the giving way of the ma”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Mitchell v. Marker

2. ““Such carrier only undertakes that he will carry them without negligence or fault. But as there arc» committed to his charge, for the time, the lives or safety of persons of all ages, and of all degrees of ability for self-protection, and as the slightest failure in watchfulness may be destructive of life and limb, it is reasonable io require of him the most perfect care of prudent and cautious men; and his undertaking as to his passengers goes to this extent: that, as far as human foresight and care can reasonably go, he will transport them safely. He is not liable if injuries happen from sheer accident or misfortune, whore there is no negligence or fault, or whore no want of caution, foresight, or judgment would prevent the injury. But lie is liable for the smallest negligence in himself or his servants.” Cooley, Torts (2d Kd.) 768, 769.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Mitchell v. Marker

3. ““Damages which necessarily result from the act complained of are denominated general damages, and may be proved under the ad damnum clause or general allegation of damage, while those which are the natural consequences of the act complained of, and not the necessary result of it, are termed special damages. “The defendant must be presumed to be aware of the damages which necessarily result from the act done, and therefore he cannot be held to be taken by surprise when proof is offered of such necessarily resulting damage. But as to the damage naturally, though not necessarily, resulting from the act done, the defendant cannot be presumed to be aware of, and therefore, in order to prevent a surprise on defendant, it must be specially set forth in the complaint, or the plaintiff will not be permitted to give evidence of it at the trial.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Stoltz v. Converse