Tolman v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

44 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 48 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““What her (Mrs. Smith’s) testimony shows is simply this: that at her request the intervenor paid to the holder of said two mortgages the sums due thereon; that they were not canceled, but were assigned to the intervenor, who retained them; and that Eunice W. Smith thereupon gave to him a new mortgage for eight thousand five hundred dollars, which was intended to cover the sums paid by him upon the old mortgages, and four thousand dollars additional, loaned by him to her. In other words, the old mortgages were retired, and a new one (having a longer period to run) substituted in their place; but there was no agreement or understanding that they should be considered satisfied, and they were not canceled, but were retained by the intervenor. “This does not show an extinguishment of the old mortgages. Even if the intervenor had not taken an assignment at the time he paid them off, a court of equity would, for purposes of justice, apply the principle of subrogation. (Matzen v. Shaeffer, 65 Cal. 81 [ 3 Pac. 92 ]; Gans v. Thieme, 93 N. Y. 225, 232 ; Yaple v. Stephens, 36 Kan. 680 [ 14 Pac. 222 ]; Bacon v. Goodnow, 59 N. H. 415.) And much more is he entitled to the benefit of those securities, in view of the fact that they were not canceled, but were assigned to him. If nothing else had occurred, it is clear that he would be entitled to enforce the old mortgages.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Proctor v. Pyle

2. ““We regard the cancellation of the old mortgages and the substitution of the new, as contemporaneous acts. It was not creating a new ¡incumbrance but simply changing the form, of the old.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Barriger v. Martin

3. ““If the owner of the equity of redemption acquires the mortgage, a court of equity will, when the purposes of justice require it, treat the mortgage as still subsisting.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Baird v. Lillie