The defendants claimed the ordinance would deprive them of property without compensation; however, the court ruled that well-established precedent did not require compensation for property seized under a city's police powers.

He agreed that the Constitution protected the right to privacy, and endorsed the idea that even the Supreme Court should think long and hard before overturning well-established precedents.

Several of the briefs filed in this case have urged the Court to overrule well-established precedents which have been relied upon by employers and academic institutions, public and private, for nearly 20 years.

His opening statement ranged from a political pro's homage to the Republican White House machines that preceded his own ("The Clinton White House merely followed well-established Republican precedent.")

The Constitution does not explicitly grant the Supreme Court the power of judicial review; nevertheless, the power of this Court to overturn laws and executive actions it deems unlawful or unconstitutional is a well-established precedent.

Under well-established precedent, prosecutors were able to read a transcript of these witnesses' testimony into the record at the new trial.

In the more general category of hypothecation, there are already well-established precedents: they include the gasoline tax in the United States, which is dedicated to the funding of transportation infrastructure.

"We did not intend for the government to shed the traditional tools of criminal investigation, such as grand jury subpoenas governed by well-established precedent and wiretaps strictly monitored" by federal judges, he said.

"The judge's decision ignores well-established precedents in the area of fair and accurate reportage and opinion," said James F. Rittinger, the lawyer for Time.

Mr. Cunningham said that under well-established precedent, judges must defer to the executive branch in deciding what secrets must be protected.