Which clause requires states to recognize the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of other states?

• A. Full Faith and Credit Clause Article IV, §1
• B. Privileges & Immunities Clause
• C. Commerce Clause
• D. Ex Post Facto Clause

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is that a state must honor legal acts and records from other states. This is the Full Faith and Credit principle: each state is required to recognize the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. It’s what allows a court judgment, a marriage license, a will, or a birth certificate issued in one state to have effect in another, keeping legal transactions and official records from losing their force just because they crossed state lines. The provision sits in Article IV, Section 1 of the Constitution.

This isn’t about preventing state discrimination (that’s the Privileges & Immunities Clause), nor about Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce (the Commerce Clause), nor about forbidding retroactive criminal laws (the Ex Post Facto Clause). Those address different protections and powers, while the Full Faith and Credit Clause specifically ensures cross-state recognition of legal acts and records.