A judicial decision reached by a judge or group of judges based on facts and law. Often the decision includes a ruling on the case itself, but can also include discussion of how other laws (such as statutes) should be applied to the case. The decision can be either a binding precedent, or merely an advisory opinion that will only carry weight until it is overruled by a higher court.
The court’s decision usually consists of a majority or joint opinion, and a dissenting or concurring opinion. The decision may also contain a syllabus or appendix that describes all of the opinions in the case. The decisions of the Supreme Court are generally written in a format called a syllabus, which makes it easier for the reader to understand what happened in the case.
In cases that involve both state and federal law, the Supreme Court will sometimes write a separate opinion on the state law portion of the case. This part of the decision is known as an independent and adequate state ground, which is required for the Supreme Court to consider the case. This requirement is a safeguard against the Court overstepping its bounds.
It is very rare that the entire circuit court would decide to reconsider a decision of the first panel in the same case. When that does happen, it is referred to as a “en banc” hearing. The en banc process can be very time consuming.
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