I am Pro se and I have filed a motion to deem admitted for failure to respond and would like to use a citation from a case that I think is well stated but it was tried in the District Court. Can I point to a higher Courts decision on either an Appellate level or in the Supreme Court in support of my motion; additionally, am I limited to citing from case law in the state my case is being tried? My case is in the Court of Common Pleas in Ohio; can I cite a case that was tried in the District Court in CA?
Let me fill in the first part of your responses "YOU NEED TO GET A LAWYER..." Now can someone pick up form there and please help me with this question? Thanks in advance.
A court in another state doesn't have binding authority over the court you are in, but it can have persuasive authority. You can cite just about anything. Cases from anywhere. The court will not be required to follow that decision, like it might if it were an Ohio court. But you can use it to show that a judge somewhere used your same legal reasoning. Then it's up to the fact finder to decide if it's useful in making a decision.
Also you should probably get a lawyer.
Lawyer's go through extensive education to study and learn how to predict the weight of legal authority, including cases from within the jurisdiction and beyond, as well as statutes, rules, etc.... This will depend on the type of issues, facts, and laws at issue in each particular case. So, to answer your question, sure you can cite to whatever case you want. However, whether you should, and what weight it will have, is beyond the scope of an internet message board.
I'm not sure if you are referring to state district court or federal district court. I'm going to assume you are in state court on a state law issue. In general, you want your "rule" to be cited from a case or cases: 1) in your state; 2) dealing with the exact same legal rule/statute as you are dealing with; 3) that hasn't been overturned since being rendered due to an issue touching upon why you find the case similar to yours; 4) issued by a court higher than the court you are in (an appellate court where your case could end up if appealed, and ideally issued by your state's supreme court). You would typically avoid citing a CA case because the judge will give it much less consideration than a case from your own state. Keep in mind that these are just generalities. It all depends on the issue/law/rule you are presenting and the court you are in.
You need to get a lawyer, the context of your question makes that clear, especially if you are facing a lawyer representing the other side, in which case the game is about over.....there, done, off the soap-box.
Couple general thoughts: to answer you specific question:
-you are supposed to point to higher court's decisions, especially those in your state.
-another state's district court decision will have little or no import/impact
-be careful: citing a sentence or two that crystalizes your position, from cases not analogous on the facts to your case is a surefire way to open the door to the other side slamming your argument, and the court to denying your motion.
Any case in a court of appeals above your level in the same jurisdiction is binding precedent on the lower court, so yes you can and should cite. If in a different state, or a different court within your state, ie your in state court and you cite to the federal dist. court or a different state court branch which is not above your district in your state, is persuasive precedent meaning the court may choose to following ruling. But these are routinely cited. Lest persuasive is a different state court decision.
