State judges and federal judges are required to be conversant with both the state and federal laws as they may be required to apply either in conformity with the United States Constitution. Once a case has started in one system, it must go through that particular system to the highest level. That is, if a case is brought before a state court, it must be appealed in the state court of appeal if any party in the court is satisfied. Nevertheless, if still there is a controversy, the appeal is taken to the state supreme court (The American Judicial System, n.d). If still any party in that case still feels that justice has not been served, then the aggrieved party has the right to move to the federal Supreme Court which is the highest court …show more content…
In the United States, most of the time, courts follow binding precedent when issuing decisions. They try as much as possible to follow rulings that have been made by higher courts. With the Supreme Court being the final authority on all constitutional matters and statutes that have been passed by congress, once the Supreme Court has set a precedent, it is binding for both federal and state courts (Starr, 1972). On the other hand, district courts must follow the precedent set by the appeal courts in their circuits. Further, the state courts must follow the precedent set by the Supreme Court and the appeal courts on matters federal laws. However, when it comes to state laws, the state supreme court is free to set the precedent as long as it does not violet the United States Constitution. All state courts in that state are free to follow this …show more content…
In the UK, the justice system is subject to the European Union laws to which it has a membership. The highest court in this land is the Supreme Court that was established in the year 2009 to take over from the House of Lords; a division of parliament which used to hold the final word concerning the law in the United Kingdom. Although the supreme court of the United Kingdom is the highest court in the land, it must work in consideration of rights grant by other European bodies such as the European Court of Human Rights among others (Judicial Office International Team,