Volume IV, Issue 3
This article was originally published in Vol. 28 No. 4 of County Bar
Update,
an e-publication o
f
the Los An
g
eles Count
y
Bar Association.
Gimme 5: What Every Lawyer Should Kno
w
about Stare Decisis
Benjamin G. Shatz
One of the first concepts taught in law school is the doctrine
of stare decisis. This doctrine comes from the Latin phrase
stare decisis et non quieta movere, meaning to adhere to
precedent and not unsettle what is established. In re Osborne,
76 F. 3d 306, 309 (9th Cir. 1996). The core of the doctrine is
often simply stated that the decisions of higher courts are
binding precedent on lower courts. For law school purposes,
this understanding typically suffices. But lawyers in practice—
especially those in California—must understand much more.
Here are five key points highlighting and contrasting stare
decisis under California and federal law.
1. Geography matters in federal practice.
The basics of federal stare decisis are easily understood.
Decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court bind all other federal
courts, decisions of the various circuit courts of appeals bind
the federal district courts located within each circuit, and the
decisions of district courts generally have no binding
precedential effect. Thus, a district court judge in California is
not bound to follow precedent from any circuit court except
published decisions from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals,
which has appellate jurisdiction over California’s federal
courts. In other words, geography—specifically whether a
given district court sits within a given circuit—has substantive
meaning in federal practice.
2. There is only one California Court of Appeal.
In contrast, although the California court system seems to
mirror the structure of the federal courts, there is no
Michael Berger
Partner
mmberger@manatt.com
310.312.4185
Benjamin Shatz
Counsel
bshatz@manatt.com
310.312.4383
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2008
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