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Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Courts - In Illinois, "Can you cite to unpublished opinions?" What about Indiana?
The answer, according to an article by Helen W. Gunnarsson in the Illinois Bar Journal, is "In Illinois state court, no. In Illinois-based federal district courts, yes."
That even experienced lawyers may be uncertain isn't surprising, for the rules differ depending on whether a matter is in state or federal court, and on whether it's at the trial level or on appeal.In Illinois state court, an Illinois Supreme Court Rule "governs the citation of opinions in all of the state courts in Illinois, circuit, appellate, and supreme." It is similar to the Indiana rule.
In Indiana state court, Indiana Supreme Court Appellate Rule 65D governs:
Unless later designated for publication, a not-for-publication memorandum decision shall not be regarded as precedent and shall not be cited to any court except by the parties to the case to establish res judicata, collateral estoppel, or law of the case.Notice that it states "to any court," so as with Illinois, one state rule governs the citation of opinions in all of the state courts in Indiana, be they trial, appellate, orsupreme.
In Illinois federal appellate court, which like Indiana is the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 32.1 governs. Read the article for more detail on the federal appellate and trial court requirements.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 5, 2011 11:35 AM
Posted to Courts in general