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Question. What happens if the Federal Circuit decides that it is unwilling to ever listen to the Supreme Court?

Does the Supreme Court have anything that it can do beyond being kept busy rehearing everything that the Federal Circuit bungled?




1) Impeachment, if Congress feels strongly enough that the judges of the FC have breached their duty to uphold the law (as SCOTUS rulings are binding law upon lower courts).

2) SCOTUS cannot do anything except to rehear FC cases...but it can change internal procedures and court rules so that, for example, all patent cases are automatically granted review by SCOTUS upon application by either party, etc. (SCOTUS cannot do away with the requirement that parties request review, as that is a procedural requirement set forth by law.)


The SCOTUS doesn't have to rehear the case. They can and sometimes do respond to a petition by just reversing the lower court.


They can, but ruling on an appeal without issuing an opinion is not only considered bad jurisprudence, it has no precedential effect and thus does not create binding law on the lower court.

Consequently, it is rarely done. Moreover, in most instances where it is done, the reversal is on procedural rather than substantive grounds.


It seems whether the ruling sets a precedent or not is irrelevant, since the Federal Circuit will just ignore it anyway.




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