stare decisis

American  

[stair-ee di-sahy-sis] / ˈstɛər i dɪˈsaɪ sɪs /

noun

Law.

1. the doctrine that rules or principles of law on which a court rested a previous decision are authoritative in all future cases in which the facts are substantially the same.

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stare decisis Cultural  

1. A Latin phrase that literally means “to stand on the decisions.” It expresses the common law doctrine that court decisions should be guided by precedent.

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Etymology

Origin of stare decisis

First recorded in 1855–60, stare decisis is from Latin stāre dēcīsīs “to stand by things (that have been) settled”

Example Sentences

All said they respected stare decisis, the principle that justices should be guided by the decisions made by previous courts, such as Roe and Planned Parenthood vs.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 21, 2024

“You can’t look at historical figures about stare decisis and know anything,” he said, “because sometimes courts and justices are honest about overruling precedent and sometimes they are not.”

From New York Times • Jan. 29, 2024

Legal notions like stare decisis and the law of the case had to give way.

From Slate • May 7, 2023

She said that disregarding stare decisis — the doctrine of abiding by past decisions in the absence of compelling evidence that change is required — undermines public confidence.

From Washington Post • Sep. 29, 2022

It is not to be denied that there is some difficulty in stating with accuracy the limits of the rule stare decisis.

From An Essay on Professional Ethics Second Edition by Sharswood, George