Question

How can a state be forced to follow a Supreme Court decision with which it disagrees?

Answer 1

Once a decision has been made, the Supreme Court does not have the ability to enforce its rulings. It is up to the Executive and Legislative branches of government to enforce the decisions. The Supreme Court's ability to have its decisions followed relies on the politicians and government authorities to abide by those decisions.

Step-by-step explanation:

Once a decision has been made by the Supreme Court, it does not have the ability to enforce its rulings. The enforcement of Supreme Court decisions can only be done by the Executive and Legislative branches of government. For example, when segregation in southern schools was declared unconstitutional in 1954, it took until 1957 for the decision to actually be enforced by the Federal government using troops.

In instances where a state disagrees with a Supreme Court decision, there have been cases of interposition or nullification by blocking federal laws and actions that the state deems to exceed the constitutional powers of the national government. However, the courts have generally not been sympathetic to these arguments unless the federal government is directly requiring state and local officials to do something.

Ultimately, the ability of the Supreme Court to have its decisions followed relies on the politicians and government authorities to respect and abide by those decisions.

Answer 2

Just because the state doesn't agree, if the US Supreme Court renders a decision in your favor the state must comply. There is no higher court than the US Supreme Court, so the state cannot file an appeal.

Hope this helps!