Also known as: rules applied · applied rule
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The legal principle or standard that a court uses to resolve the issues presented in a case.
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Roland Rhodes, a citizen of State A, sues Redline Automotive, a State B corporation, in federal court over a contract dispute. No federal statute or rule directly addresses whether a particular evidentiary presumption is substantive or procedural. The court weighs the state's interest in uniform application of its presumption against the federal system's interest in efficient administration and decides to apply federal practice.
Rosalind Reed, domiciled in State X, contracts to sell land located in State Y to Raven Logistics. The parties dispute which state's law governs their interests in the land. The court evaluates the purposes of each state's property rules, the parties' justified expectations, and the states' relative interests before selecting the state with the most significant relationship to the transaction and the land.
Raymond Ramos, a testator domiciled in State P, leaves land in State Q to a charity. State Q's rule limits charitable bequests while State P has no such limit. The court examines the purpose behind State Q's restriction and the parties' connections to each state to decide whether State Q's rule should apply to the particular issue.
Rosa Ruiz owns parcels near Lake Tahoe. A regional agency imposes two-year moratoria on development while studying environmental impacts. Ruiz claims a categorical taking under Lucas. The court applies the rule that temporary restrictions on use do not constitute a total deprivation of all economically viable use and therefore evaluates the claim under the Penn Central factors instead.
Raphael Rivera is charged with murdering a witness who had given statements to police. The prosecution seeks to introduce the witness's prior statements. The court applies the rule that forfeiture by wrongdoing requires proof the defendant acted with intent to prevent the witness from testifying and therefore excludes the statements because that intent is not shown.
Rita Russell, a lawful permanent resident, pleads guilty to a drug offense on counsel's advice that never mentions deportation risk. After conviction she faces removal. The court applies the rule that counsel must advise a noncitizen client that a conviction may carry adverse immigration consequences and finds the representation constitutionally deficient.
It states the legal principle or standard the court uses to decide the issues presented. The section identifies the doctrine or test that governs the outcome once the facts and question presented are clear.
Supporting sources
…and § 1332 diversity jurisdiction were conditioned on the same jurisdictional-amount limitation, the same nonaggregation rule applied under both heads of federal jurisdiction. But cf. ante , at 562. The Court added, however, that "Congress ha[d] exempted major areas of federal-question jurisdiction from any…