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Simple English definitions for legal terms

stare decisis

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A quick definition of stare decisis:

Stare decisis is a fancy Latin term that means courts have to follow the decisions made by other courts before them. This helps make sure that the law is consistent and fair. If a court has already decided on a similar case, the new court will usually make the same decision. This is called "precedent." There are two types of stare decisis: horizontal (when a court follows its own previous decisions) and vertical (when a court follows decisions made by higher courts). Sometimes, if a previous decision was really bad or doesn't work anymore, a court can decide not to follow it. But usually, courts have to follow what other courts have already decided.

A more thorough explanation:

Stare decisis is a legal doctrine that means "to stand by things decided" in Latin. It is the principle that courts will follow previous court decisions when deciding similar cases. This helps to promote consistency and predictability in the legal system.

Horizontal stare decisis refers to a court following its own previous decisions. For example, if the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals follows a ruling it made in a previous case, that is horizontal stare decisis.

Vertical stare decisis refers to a court following the decisions of higher courts. For example, if the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals follows a ruling made by the U.S. Supreme Court, that is vertical stare decisis.

Although courts usually follow precedent, there are exceptions. If a previous decision is unworkable or badly reasoned, the court may not follow it. This is particularly true in constitutional cases. For example, in Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to follow the precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson.

Suppose a court is deciding a case involving the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. If a previous court has already ruled on a similar case and found that the search was unreasonable, the current court will likely follow that decision. This is an example of stare decisis in action.

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MIAMI A
[] AromaticTroubledDormouse
20:55
How does one know if they are UR1 or UR2?
[] AromaticTroubledDormouse
20:56
CONGRATS MACAQUE!
TY
got a random stanford email and almost had a heart attack
ALSO CONGRATS!
Congrats1!
21:15
Miami A, yall I'm so excited I could cry.
21:15
Feel like I can finally stop holding my breath!! Whew!!!
[] baddestbunny
22:16
every time I get accosted by a strange man who follows me around because my male coworkers were too busy talking to walk me back to my car I get closer to saying we need to bring back traditional gender roles
Dkk
22:32
Nice! @Macaque
Dkk
22:32
@Aromatic, Have to guess.
Dkk
22:33
That sucks @Bunny do you have to go to the hospital?
[] baddestbunny
22:40
I said accosted not assaulted
23:35
guys. my notre dame address just went long is this good or bad
1a2b3c4d26z
23:37
Oooooo me too
23:37
omg is this good or bad
Dkk
23:47
Idk if gender roles are gunna fix that then.
23:49
it looks like most people who applied in october last cycle didn't get a decision until january... does it even mean anything that our addresses went long??
hows ED 2 compared to ED 1?
Dkk
0:10
No idea
windyMagician
0:34
reporting live to say my ndls address also went long
does it mean anything ^
Dkk
2:21
NDLS and Fordham took a very long time last year. It's good info for people to know.
[] baddestbunny
4:29
let’s get after it boys and girls
Dkk
5:21
I gtg to bed soon.
Dkk
5:22
Big day today. Gunna be a crazy one. I will sleep through the first half.
good morning lsd it is 5 am EST
also jazzy my ndls address went long ages ago i sadly do not think it means anything
my stanford address also went long LOL i think at most it's an indicator it's under review
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