714
Opinion of Stevens, J.
Stare decisis has special force when legislators or citizens "have acted in reliance on a previous decision, for in this instance overruling the decision would dislodge settled rights and expectations or require an extensive legislative response." Hilton v. South Carolina Public Railways Comm'n, 502 U. S. 197, 202 (1991); see also Casey, 505 U. S., at 854-856 ( joint opinion of O'Connor, Kennedy, and Souter, JJ.). Here, however, the reliance interests at stake in adhering to Bramblett are notably modest. In view of the extensive array of statutes that already exist to penalize false statements within the Judicial Branch, see, e. g., 18 U. S. C. § 1621 (perjury); § 1623 (false declarations before grand jury or court); § 1503 (obstruction of justice); § 287 (false claims against the United States), we doubt that prosecutors have relied on § 1001 as an important means of deterring and punishing litigation-related misconduct.14 But we
need not speculate, for we have direct evidence on this point. The United States Attorneys' Manual states quite plainly that "[p]rosecutions should not be brought under 18 U. S. C. § 1001 for false statements submitted in federal court proceedings"; it instead directs prosecutors to proceed under the perjury or obstruction of justice statutes. U. S. Dept. of
of a higher court," see post, at 720. In concluding that the cases adopting the judicial function exception are faithful to the intent of the Legislature that adopted § 1001, we have obviously exercised our own independent judgment. Thus, far from "subvert[ing] the very principle on which a hierarchical court system is built," post, at 719, our decision merely reflects our assessment of the statutory construction issue this case presents, while serving what the dissent acknowledges to be one of the central purposes of stare decisis: promoting "stability and certainty in the law," post, at 720.
14 The perjury and false claims statutes also cover the Legislative Branch, as does 18 U. S. C. § 1505 (obstruction of justice). The existence of overlaps with other statutes does not itself militate in favor of overruling Bramblett; Congress may, and often does, enact separate criminal statutes that may, in practice, cover some of the same conduct. See United States v. Batchelder, 442 U. S., at 123-124; United States v. Gilliland, 312 U. S. 86, 95 (1941). The overlaps here simply demonstrate that prosecutors cannot be said to have any significant reliance interest in Bramblett.
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