Issue Preclusion, also known as collateral estoppel, is a legal doctrine that prevents a party from re-litigating an issue that has already been decided in a previous case. If a court has made a final ruling on a specific issue, that ruling is binding in future cases involving the same parties, provided the issue was essential to the original judgment. This principle helps promote judicial efficiency and consistency by ensuring that once an issue is settled, it cannot be contested again. It applies only to issues that were actually litigated and determined in the earlier case, safeguarding the integrity of the legal process.