cellors. The
anomaly of this decision was partially removed in King _v._ Order of
United Commercial Travelers,[557] where the Court held that the federal
courts were not bound by the decision of a court of first instance of
South Carolina, which was the only decision applicable to the
interpretation of the insurance policy in dispute. Nor is this the whole
story. In the event of a State Supreme Court's reversal of its earlier
decisions the federal courts are bound by the latest decision. Hence a
judgment of a federal district court, correctly applying State law as
interpreted by the State's highest court, must be reversed on appeal if
the State court in the meantime has reversed its earlier rulings and
adopted a contrary interpretation. Though aware of possible
complications from this rule, the Court insisted that "until such time
as a case is no longer _sub judice_, the duty rests upon the federal
courts to apply the Rules of Decision statute in accordance with the
then controlling decision of the highest state court."[558]

Although the Rules of Decision Act[559] requires the federal courts to
follow State decisions only in civil cases, the application of the
Tompkins rule has been extended to suits in equity.[560] In Guaranty
Trust Co. _v._ York,[561] the Court held that when a statute of
limitations barred recovery in a State court, a federal court sitting in
equity could not entertain the suit because of diversity of citizenship.
This ruling was based on the express premise that "a federal court
adjudicating a State-created right solely because of the diversity of
citizenship of the parties is for that purpose, in effect, only another
court of the State, * * * "[562] It was held to be immaterial,
therefore, whether statutes of limitations were designated as
substantive or procedural. The Tompkins Case, it was said, was not an
endeavor to formulate scientific legal terminology. "In essence, the
intent of that decision was to insure that, in all cases where a federal
court is exercising jurisdiction solely because of the diversity of
citizenship of the parties, the outcome of the litigation in the federal
court should be substantially the same, so far as legal rules determine
the outcome of a litigation, as it would be if tried in a State
court."[563]

Controversies Between Citizens of the Same State Claiming Lands Under
Grants of Different States

This clause was not in the first draft of the Constitution, but