Stare decisis is best described as which judicial principle?

• A. The court's willingness to overturn settled principles
• B. The court's preference for maintaining stability in the law through abiding by settled principle
• C. The requirement to suppress illegally obtained evidence
• D. The obligation to publish opinions in advance

Answer: (B)

Stare decisis means following previous court decisions and treating those past rulings as a guide for future cases. This principle prioritizes stability and predictability in the law, so people, businesses, and governments can rely on established rules rather than facing radically different outcomes in similar circumstances.

That’s why the best answer emphasizes the court’s preference for maintaining stability by abiding by settled principles. Precedent creates consistency across cases, reduces arbitrary outcomes, and helps ensure equal treatment because similar facts lead to similar results over time. While courts can depart from precedent when a prior ruling is clearly in error or circumstances change, the default is to stand by what has already been decided rather than overturning settled principles or pursuing unrelated aims.

The other options describe unrelated concepts—overturning settled principles goes against the usual impulse of stare decisis; suppressing illegally obtained evidence is a procedural rule about admissibility; publishing opinions in advance is not about following prior decisions and is not what stare decisis entails.