Stare decisis

Stare decisis is the doctrine that courts should generally follow applicable prior judicial decisions. It promotes consistency while allowing precedent to be distinguished or overruled in limited circumstances.

Binding precedent: A prior judicial decision that a court is legally required to follow in a later case. Stare decisis gives binding force to applicable decisions from courts with authority over the deciding court.
Common law: A legal system in which judicial decisions help establish and develop rules alongside legislation and other sources of law. Stare decisis is especially associated with legal systems that treat prior judicial decisions as sources of law.
Judicial activism: A label for judicial decision-making perceived to depart from restrained application of law or established precedent. Debates about activism often concern whether a court has followed or departed from precedent appropriately.
Legal certainty: The quality of law being sufficiently clear and stable for people to anticipate legal consequences. Consistent use of precedent can make legal outcomes more predictable over time.
Marbury v. Madison: The 1803 United States Supreme Court case that established the Court’s authority to review the constitutionality of federal laws. Its enduring role illustrates how a judicial decision can become foundational precedent.
Persuasive precedent: A prior decision that may influence a court but does not legally require it to follow that decision. The doctrine encourages reliance on precedent, but only some decisions bind the court.
Judicial hierarchy: The arrangement of courts into levels of authority, which determines how decisions of one court affect another. A precedent’s binding force depends largely on the deciding court’s place in the hierarchy.
Originalism: A method of constitutional interpretation that gives controlling weight to the text’s original public meaning or understanding. Originalist reasoning can support, limit, or conflict with reliance on later judicial precedent.
Judicial legitimacy: Public acceptance of courts’ authority to interpret and apply law. Respect for precedent can signal that judicial decisions follow principled limits rather than personal preference.
Plessy v. Ferguson: The 1896 United States Supreme Court decision that upheld racial segregation under the separate-but-equal doctrine. Its later rejection demonstrates that precedent can preserve an unjust rule before being overruled.

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