Lepak v. McClain’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

9 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 12 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “... The majority’s ruling fulfills the prophetic warning given by Justice Hargrave in his dissent to Potter v. Wilson, 609 P.2d 1278 (OHa.1980). In Potter , the terms of a divorce decree gave title to a jointly-owned' enterprise to the wife along with the outstanding indebtedness of the business thereby holding the husband harmless for that debt. When the wife defaulted on the debt, the husband brought a citation for contempt against the wife requesting the district court to use her contempt powers to enforce the divorce decree. The wife applied for a writ of prohibition, and a bare majority of this Court held that OHa. Const, art. 2, § 13, barred the district court from coercing “payment of a civilly adjudicated claim for money” by imprisonment. In a dissent joined by Justices Barnes, Doolin and this writer, Justice Hargrave pointed out that the district court had the inherent power to use contempt to enforce its orders. He further stated: “I feel the majority’s rationale is as applicable to 12 O.S.1971 § 850 as it is to the instant proceeding, which fact is an indicia of the error promulgated here ...” 609 P.2d at 1282 . Thus, in Potter , this Court took a large step toward erasing unquestioned inherent power of a court to enforce its orders by contempt. The majority in the instant case is taking another step in stripping the courts of their power. * ⅝ * * In addition, the majority overlooks the logic of Freeman v. Heiman, 426 F.2d 1050 (10th Cir.1970), in which the Tenth C”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. Shipman v. French

2. “This Court is duty-bound to be intolerant of the legislature's attempt to do indirectly that which the constitution directly prohibits.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. Morgan v. Daxon

3. “A mandatory provision in our constitution . . . is a limitation upon the power of the legislature.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 2025 OK AG 3 - Question Submitted by: James V. Barwick, Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Commission