Re: MAPS gets sued, could this get bigger?

[Eric Johnson <eric@tamu.edu>]

Date sent:              Sun, 16 Jul 2000 15:40:32 -0400
From:                   Chris Brenton <cbrenton@sover.net>
Send reply to:          cbrenton@sover.net
To:                     firewalls@interlinx.bc.ca
Copies to:              Firewalls@Lists.GNAC.NET
Subject:                Re: MAPS gets sued, could this get bigger?

> firewalls@interlinx.bc.ca wrote:
> I have to disagree. US courts are based on precedence. Once one is set
> the preverbal floodgate gets opened up. I've sat in on cases where
> property law was used as precedence in cybercrimes. This case would be
> even less of a stretch. ;)

Not quite.  Precedents can only be set at a certain level of court 
and they are only binding on the courts directly beneath that court.  
They are not binding on the same court; they are not binding on 
higher courts; they are not binding on other courts at the same 
level; and they are not binding on lower courts that are not beneath 
that court.  That's why it's common to have conflicting decisions in 
various parts of the county on similar issues.

It is impossible for the lowest level courts in any court system to 
set precedents since there are no courts underneath them that are 
bound by that precedent.

Also, at least in some court systems (Texas, for example) courts 
that can set precedents may be able to also make decisions that 
do not set precedents.  I don't know if federal courts are like that at 
all.

Eric Johnson
--------------------
eric@tamu.edu
wjohnson@cs.tamu.edu
-
[To unsubscribe, send mail to majordomo@lists.gnac.net with
"unsubscribe firewalls" in the body of the message.]