Editing Precedent (section)

===Persuasive precedent===

Persuasive precedent refers to legal decisions that a court may consider but is not obligated to follow when deciding a case, as they are not binding.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |title=Glossary {{!}} Practical Law - Legal Resources & Know-How for Professionals |url=https://content.next.westlaw.com/Glossary/PracticalLaw/Id4cf190ef3ad11e28578f7ccc38dcbee?transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default) |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=content.next.westlaw.com |language=en-US |quote="Persuasive precedent. Precedent that a court may, but is not required to, rely on in deciding a case. Examples of persuasive precedent include: decisions from courts in neighboring jurisdictions; and dicta in a decision by a higher court."}}</ref> Examples include decisions from courts in neighboring jurisdictions and ''dicta'' from rulings by higher courts.<ref name=":8" /> In Australia, decisions of superior overseas courts, such as those from the United Kingdom, serve as persuasive precedent.<ref>{{cite web |title=Precedent and evidence |url=https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/find-legal-answers/books-online/hot-topics-courts-and-tribunals/precedent-and-evidence |access-date=2024-12-01 |work=Hot Topics: Courts and Tribunals |publisher=State Library of New South Wales |quote="A precedent is 'persuasive' if it was established by a superior court that is not higher in the hierarchy of courts. This means that the precedent should be seriously considered, but is not required to be followed. For example, a precedent established by the Supreme Court of New South Wales is persuasive but not binding on the Supreme Court of Victoria, since these courts are not in the same hierarchy and are of equal authority. Decisions of superior overseas courts, particularly the superior courts of the United Kingdom, are persuasive precedents in Australia."}}</ref>

Although not binding precedent, a court may choose to rely on persuasive precedent if the reasoning is compelling.<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=persuasive authority |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/persuasive_authority |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=LII / Legal Information Institute |language=en |quote="Although court decisions of persuasive authority are not binding precedent, a court may choose to rely on and follow the decisions. Cases such as this one from Michigan explain that a court may follow the decisions of another jurisdiction if the reasoning is persuasive. Courts may also look to decisions from other jurisdictions for guidance; for example, when deciding issues of first impression—like this one from Colorado—or matters in which the forum state law is unclear—like this one from Utah. A court, however, will not follow decisions of persuasive authority when the decision is against the forum jurisdiction's public policy."}}</ref> Courts often turn to decisions from other jurisdictions for guidance, particularly when interpreting unclear laws or addressing "cases of first impression"—situations in which no prior binding authority exists and the court must determine the applicable law for the first time.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=case of first impression |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/case_of_first_impression |access-date=2024-11-27 |website=LII / Legal Information Institute |language=en |quote="A case of first impression is a case that presents a legal issue that has never been decided by the governing jurisdiction. ... A case of first impression lacks controlling precedent. In other words, a court deciding a case of first impression cannot rely on prior decisions nor is the court bound by stare decisis. To adopt the most persuasive rule of law, courts will look to various sources for guidance."}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-11-24 |title=Definition of CASE |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/case#legalDictionary |access-date=2024-12-04 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en |quote="— case of first impression: a case that presents an issue or question never before decided or considered by the court"}}</ref>