Which decisions are binding on all lower courts?

Which decisions are binding on all lower courts?

• A. Summary Court Judge decisions
• B. Supreme Court and Court of Appeals decisions
• C. Unpublished opinions
• D. Statutory law

Answer: (B)

Binding authority in the court system comes from higher court decisions. The Supreme Court is the highest authority, and its interpretations of the law must be followed by every court in the jurisdiction. The Court of Appeals sits below the Supreme Court, and its published opinions establish precedents that trial courts must apply to similar cases. Unpublished opinions are generally not binding precedents, though they can be persuasive. Statutory law is binding on all courts as the written law created by the legislature, but it isn’t a court decision. So, the decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals are the ones that bind all lower courts.

Binding authority in the court system comes from higher court decisions. The Supreme Court is the highest authority, and its interpretations of the law must be followed by every court in the jurisdiction. The Court of Appeals sits below the Supreme Court, and its published opinions establish precedents that trial courts must apply to similar cases. Unpublished opinions are generally not binding precedents, though they can be persuasive. Statutory law is binding on all courts as the written law created by the legislature, but it isn’t a court decision. So, the decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals are the ones that bind all lower courts.