Certification to the Supreme Court

The Second Circuit has certified a question of law -- the validity of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines -- to the Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court, that is. Courts certify questions of law to state supreme courts all the time, when the state law question is unsettled and it would help matters if the state supreme court resolved the issue. But certifying a question upstairs to the Supreme Court -- well, it happens so rarely that Eugene Volokh, a former Court clerk, didn't know it was even possible.