Opinion ID: 2976589
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: standard of review

Text: When a district court interprets state law, “a court of appeals should review de novo a district court’s determination of state law.” Salve Regina College v. Russell, 499 U.S. 225, 231 (1991) (declaring the standard of review in a diversity case); see also Mike’s Train House, Inc. v. Lionel, L.L.C., 472 F.3d 398, 413 (6th Cir. 2006). “A matter requiring statutory interpretation is a question of law requiring de novo review, and the ‘starting point’ for interpretation ‘is the language of the statute itself.’” United States v. Caldwell, 49 F.3d 251, 251 (6th Cir. 1995) (citation omitted) (quoting Consumer Prod. Safety Comm’n v. GTE Sylvania, Inc., 447 U.S. 102, 108 (1980)). Similarly, “[w]here, in formulating instructions, the ‘district court engages in statutory construction as a matter of law, . . . [the Sixth Circuit] review[s] [the] conclusions de novo.’” United States v. Buckley, 934 F.2d 84, 87-88 (6th Cir. 1991) (second, third, and fourth alterations in original) (quoting United States v. Brown, 915 F.2d 219, 223 (6th Cir. 1990)).