Definition: Binding precedents are decisions in court cases that establish legal standards that must be followed by lower courts. Supreme Court decisions establish a binding precedent on court cases addressing similar issues across the country. Consequently, lower court judges are obligated to rule in a manner consistent with the binding precedent set by the Supreme Court in similar cases. Rulings of lower circuit courts set a binding precedent for courts within that circuit.
Examples:
The 1982 Supreme Court ruling in the Board of Education of Westchester County v. Amy Rowley case established a binding precedent on lower courts across the United States that established that children with disabilities were entitled to appropriate services; not the best available services.