Authorities Flashcards
1
Q
Primary Authorities
A
Constitutions Statutes Case Law Court Rules Administrative Regulations
2
Q
Secondary Authorities
A
Legal Encyclopedias American Law Reports (ALR) Restatements of the Law Treaties Law Review Articles
3
Q
Mandatory Authorities
A
A source of law a court must rely on when reaching a decision, such as an enacted law (statute, ordinance, etc.) that governs the legal question being addressed, or an opinion of a higher court in the jurisdiction that addressed the same or a similar legal questions and facts.
4
Q
Persuasive Authority
A
Any authority a court is not bound to consider or follow but may consider or follow when reaching a decision, such as an opinion of a court in another state on the same or a similar issue, or a secondary authority source (encyclopedia article, legal dictionary definition, etc.).
