Salve Regina College v. Russell

Sharon Russell (plaintiff) signed a contract with Salve Regina College (College) (defendant) agreeing to lose weight to remain in its nursing program, failed to comply, and withdrew; she sued for breach of an implied agreement to educate her, and the district court, relying partly on the judge's own prior experience as a Rhode Island state trial judge, predicted the Rhode Island Supreme Court would extend the doctrine of substantial performance (previously limited to construction contracts) to her academic dispute. The jury, so instructed, found for Russell; the First Circuit affirmed on the theory that appellate courts must defer to a district judge's interpretation of the law of the state in which he sits, and the College sought certiorari.