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Vertical Stare Decisis And Three-Judge District Courts, Michael T. Morley

Scholarly Publications

Three-judge federal district courts have jurisdiction over many issues central to our democratic system, including constitutional challenges to congressional and legislative districts, as well as to certain federal campaign-finance statutes. They are similarly responsible for enforcing key provisions of the Voting Rights Act. Litigants often have the right to appeal their rulings directly to the U.S. Supreme Court. Because of this unusual appellate process, courts and commentators disagree on whether such three-judge district court panels are bound by circuit precedent or instead are free to adjudicate these critical issues constrained only by U.S. Supreme Court rulings.

The applicability of court …

Moderating The Use Of Lay Opinion Identification Testimony Related To Surveillance Video, George Bach

Florida State University Law Review

Traditionally, under the "silent witness" theory, when video surveillance recordings are authenticated and admitted at trial, the video "speaks for itself." However, with increasing frequency, courts have permitted witnesses to provide lay opinion identification testimony about individuals in the surveillance video. The testimony is offered as lay opinion testimony that assists the jury, particularly in cases where the video is of poor quality, the subject's face is difficult to see, or the subject's appearance has changed by the time of trial. Recent state court opinions (including several state supreme courts as a matter of first impression) have upheld the admission …

In The Shadows: Third-Party Litigation Funding Agreements And The Effect Their Nondisclosure Has On Civil Trials, Jeffrey James Grosholz

Florida State University Law Review

Third-party litigation funding ("TPLF") has become an increasingly common practice in the United States in recent years, especially in the field of civil litigation. In civil practice, TPLF entails a third party funding the litigation costs of an actual party to a case and in turn the third party receives a share of any damages if the suit is successful. Often, the court and jury are not aware of any TPLF agreement, as there are currently few rules requiring disclosure of the existence of such agreements or the identity of TPLF financiers. And while generally entities engaged in TPLF have …