Legal Question in Appeals and Writs in Maine
Meister vs. Moore
Hi,
This is a mere academic question. I am trying to understand if the U.S. Supreme Court decision of Meister vs. Moore is a binding appelate decision across the country, or if it was only binding on the particular case. I am confused because the supreme court's decision includes the text ''If there has been a construction given to the statute by the Supreme Court of Michigan, that construction must, in
this case, be controlling with us.'' But at the same time, there are websites out there that state it's controlling case law. (Ex: ''It should be noted that Meister has never been reversed and is still controlling case law concerning the fundamental right to marry without state interference.'')
Can an appeal under a ''Writ of Error'' to the U.S. Supreme court, analyzing a state law, be controlling across the country?
It seems like from the language that the U.S supreme court expected the U.S. court in Pennsylvania to follow the case law of the Michigan supreme court, and the U.S. supreme court was actually ''bound'' by it.
I also thought that states didn't have to agree with the judicial interpretations of another state's laws, even if the interpretations were from a court in the foreign state?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Meister vs. Moore
The principle of Meister is that if a state's highest court has stated what a statute of that state means, then no other state or federal court can rule to the contrary - unless there is a federal constitutional issue which is implicated.
That legal principle is binding on all courts - federal and state - because the Supreme Court is the ultimate decider.
And each state must give full faith and credit to the laws and judicial decisions of other states. But there is a legal area known as conflicts of law, with rules for how a particular court chooses which law to apply when there are conflicting laws or decisions. And these rules include the federal constitution and full faith and credit issues.
This is an extremely complex area of the law, and your question is unclear about the answer you seek.
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