Exam 8: Eastman Kodak Company Kodak: Film Vs Digital: Can Kodak Build a Bridge

The phrase "on all fours" is used to describe an opinion when the facts of that opinion and those of the client's case and the rule of law that applies are identical or so similar that the court opinion is clearly on point.

For a case to be on point, three requirements must be met.

The doctrine of precedent is a basic principle of the common law system that requires a court to follow a previous decision of that court or a higher court in the jurisdiction when the current decision involves issues and key facts similar to those involved in the previous decision.

If the rule or principle applied in the court opinion is the same rule or principle that applies in the client's case, the opinion is on point.

Precedent is:

The determination of whether a case is on point must be made before the case may apply as precedent.

A case is precedent (on point)if there is a sufficient similarity between the key facts and rule of law or legal principle of the court opinion and the matter before the subsequent court.

If the law applied in the court opinion is different from that which applies to the client's case, the court opinion cannot be mandatory precedent.

When there is a major difference in the key facts of a court opinion and the key facts of the client's case, the opinion cannot be on point.

When the key facts of the court opinion and the key facts of the client's case are not similar, the court opinion may still be on point.

Case law analysis is the process of determining if a court opinion governs or affects the outcome of a client's case.

The terms precedent and on point are often used interchangeably.

A court opinion interpreting a common law rule or principle may apply as precedent for a client's case that requires the application of a different common law rule or principle.

A key criterion for a court opinion to be on point is that the key and background facts of the opinion are sufficiently similar to the key and background facts of the client's case.

If the law applied in the court opinion is different from the law that applies to the client's case, the opinion can be:

Stare decisis is an earlier court decision on an issue that governs or guides a subsequent court in its determination of an identical or similar issue based on identical or similar key facts.

For a case to be on point, the key and background facts of the court opinion must be sufficiently similar to the key and background facts of the client's case.

A court opinion that a court looks to for guidance when reaching a decision, but is not bound to follow, is referred to as:

When the key facts of the court opinion and the key facts of the client's case are not similar, if substitution of the key facts would not result in changing the outcome of the case, the court opinion can be used as precedent.

Persuasive precedent must be followed by the lower courts in the jurisdiction.