Joseph Buffington
Judge Buffington no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.
How Judge Buffington decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
Treats a store's duty to commercial invitees as affirmative and rejects any requirement that the customer inspect for latent defects.
“The store owed such customer the affirmative duty of keeping the store approach reasonably safe and of itself giving warning of its unsafe condition. The customer had a right to assume defendant had done its duty and, in the absence of any patent defect in the steps, was justified in using them. She was not required to stop and inspect the steps before using them.”
Distinguishes an unpatented conception from property capable of seizure absent a trust or contractual duty.
“As we view it, it is the grant of a patent for an invention that creates property and unless some trust or contract relation exists, the conception of an invention, so long as it is not patented is not ■property which can be levied on or seized and taken in execution.”
Procedural preferences
Declines to reopen long-ignored defaults when changed litigation incentives prompt a delayed request.
“It elected to sleep on its alleged rights, and equity favors the vigilant and looks with disfavor on the dilatory suitor.”
Frames design-patent infringement through the likelihood that a repeat buyer would mistake the accused product for the patented design.
“The test of infringement is whether one who had seen the plaintiff’s receptacle and desired to buy another, would be misled by the defendant’s structure into imagining he was purchasing the plaintiff’s design structure.”
Cautions
Avoids rewriting a detailed and satisfactory trial-court analysis when no broader principle is at stake.
“The detailed and satisfactory reasoning of the court’s opinion leaves nothing further to be said, and an opinion by this court would be but a studied effort to clothe in different language what has been stated in the trial court’s opinion.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“In view of the full and satisfactory discussion the questions in the ease have already had at the hands of the court below, we limit ourselves to now stating the decree is affirmed.”
“The petition for certiorari is denied and dismissed.”
“We therefore limit ourselves to an affirmance of the decree appealed from.”
“we limit ourselves to affirming the court’s decree.”
“We accordingly affirm the decree below.”
“All of the matters advanced by the bankrupts’ counsel have been duly considered, with the result that the decree below is approved and affirmed.”
“we limit ourselves to affirming the cases on Judge Fake’s opinion.”
“The decree below is therefore affirmed.”
“Finding no reversible error, the judgments below are affirmed.”
“With such modification, the decree below is affirmed.”
A historical record
Judge Buffington no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.