Opinion ID: 222565
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Determining Virginia Law

Text: To determine questions of state law, we look principally to the opinions of that state's courts. Where, as here, a question of state law has not been conclusively resolved by those courts, our general practice is to look next to the law of the circuit in which the state is located, here the Fourth Circuit. See Factors, Etc., Inc. v. Pro Arts, Inc., 652 F.2d 278, 283 (2d Cir.1981). However, where circuit law is no more conclusive, or where we have some reason to question the continuing validity of that law, certification of one or more questions to a state's highest court is an option at our disposal. See, e.g., Desiano v. Warner-Lambert & Co., 467 F.3d 85, 92 n. 4 (2d Cir.2006). Indeed, because certification was not available to the court in Factors, it could not resolve the question of our ability to certify a question of state law to a state court even though the question had already been answered by the sister circuit whose jurisdiction included the state in question. We did, however, appear to anticipate the issues that might then arise. See Factors, 652 F.2d at 282 (describing the policy rationales for deferring to sister circuits on questions of state law, [e]xcept in those [then-]few jurisdictions permitting a federal court to certify). When, as here, we lack sufficient indicia on which to decide an issue of state law despite a relevant prior federal court of appeals decision, certification to a state court may be warranted. Factors does not prevent us from certifying a question of Virginia law to a Virginia court even though there is a prior decision on point from the Fourth Circuit.