Disagreeing with Yourself: Horizontal Stare Decisis in State Intermediate Appellate Courts

32 Pages Posted: 7 May 2024 Last revised: 16 May 2024

See all articles by Steve Leben

Steve Leben

University of Missouri at Kansas City - School of Law

Date Written: May 5, 2024

Abstract

Some statewide intermediate appellate courts, like Kansas, do not follow horizontal stare decisis—one panel of the court can disagree, but not overrule, another. This article reviews how precedential disagreements arise in the Kansas Court of Appeals, what the costs and benefits are of not following horizontal stare decisis, and how attorneys might change their advocacy approach in a state like Kansas. The article concludes that the benefits of the Kansas practice in achieving better development of the law and justice in individual cases outweighs the harm of less predictability in precedent.

Keywords: Appellate procedure, stare decisive, horizontal stare decisis, intermediate appellate courts, appellate courts, precedent

JEL Classification: K40, K41

Suggested Citation

Leben, Steve, Disagreeing with Yourself: Horizontal Stare Decisis in State Intermediate Appellate Courts (May 5, 2024). Kansas Law Review, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4817806

Steve Leben (Contact Author)

University of Missouri at Kansas City - School of Law ( email )

5100 Rockhill Road
Kansas City, MO 64110-2499
United States
913-485-7192 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://https://law.umkc.edu/profiles/faculty-directory/steve-leben.html

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