Precedent

A judicial ruling in a previous case with circumstances and legal matters akin to a conflict currently presented before a court. Judges typically "adhere to precedent" - signifying that they apply the principles established in prior cases to resolve new cases that share similar circumstances and raise comparable legal questions. A judge may overlook precedent if a party can demonstrate that the previous case was incorrectly adjudicated, or that it differed in some substantial manner from the present case.