Case footnotes---binding?
Posted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 12:45 pm
Do footnotes of a legal opinion have the same binding effect as the majority opinion?
Law School Discussion Forums
https://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/
https://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=274899
This is great.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
Glorious.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
Counterpoint: some footnotes are "famous" in how important they turned out to be in subsequent decisions.cavalier1138 wrote:Glorious.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
OP: Generally, no. Footnotes are almost always going to be dicta, not the binding holding.
Winter is Coming wrote:Counterpoint: some footnotes are "famous" in how important they turned out to be in subsequent decisions.cavalier1138 wrote:Glorious.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
OP: Generally, no. Footnotes are almost always going to be dicta, not the binding holding.
True. I just wouldn't classify them as "binding" in and of themselves. It's the same as all dicta. Its treatment depends on context.Winter is Coming wrote:Counterpoint: some footnotes are "famous" in how important they turned out to be in subsequent decisions.cavalier1138 wrote:Glorious.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
OP: Generally, no. Footnotes are almost always going to be dicta, not the binding holding.
Right, they're not "nonbinding" simply because they're footnotes, but you can still argue that a footnote doesn't announce the "binding" principle of a case, i.e. the holding. Because of the way opinions are drafted, a footnote probably won't ever announce the holding, although you might argue about whether something expressed in a footnote is necessary to the ultimate holding.cavalier1138 wrote:True. I just wouldn't classify them as "binding" in and of themselves. It's the same as all dicta. Its treatment depends on context.Winter is Coming wrote:Counterpoint: some footnotes are "famous" in how important they turned out to be in subsequent decisions.cavalier1138 wrote:Glorious.mjb447 wrote:Indeed. http://www.greenbag.org/v2n3/v2n3_articles_james.pdf
OP: Generally, no. Footnotes are almost always going to be dicta, not the binding holding.