Judicial Branch

Presentation 5.1: Judicial Branch • Jurisdiction o Types of Jurisdiction: ▪ Original – right to hear a case for the first time. • Jurisdictional levels: o Federal o State o Local ▪ Appellate – right to hear a case on appeal; law has been applied unfairly or incorrectly ▪ Exclusive – assigned by Constitution; only federal courts can hear; includes cases involving national laws, the federal government or other governments (State or Foreign) ▪ Concurrent – cases that can be decided in state or federal courts • The American Legal System o Constitution of the United States o Statutory Laws – (statutes) laws that are written by state legislatures and other lawmaking bodies o Common Law – past decisions of the Court (Precedents) become the standard or rule for future cases. Origin of stare decisis; “Let the decision stand” o Public Law – deals with the relationship between the government and citizens ▪ Criminal Law ▪ Constitutional Law ▪ Administrative Law – rules and regulations of the government agencies ▪ International Law – rules that guide relations w/other countries o Private Law – deals with disputes between individuals, businesses or other organizations ▪ Contracts ▪ Property ▪ Torts (wrongful act that injures a person or someone’s property) ▪ Domestic Relations • Federal o o o o o District Courts Federal trial courts; currently 94 courts At least one per state plus D.C. and Puerto Rico 2 judges per court Have original jurisdiction Hear 80% of federal cases (about 300,000/yr.) • Court of o o o o o o • Other Federal Courts o Military Court / Military Appeals ▪ Trials of service persons (court martial) o U.S. Tax Court ▪ Disputes between taxpayers and the IRS o Territorial Courts ▪ Set up like federal district courts in U.S. territories o Courts of the District of Columbia ▪ Handles all cases for the nation’s capital o Court of Appeals for Federal Circuit ▪ Nationwide jurisdiction ▪ Civil cases mostly ▪ Patents, trademarks, copyrights o Court of International Trade ▪ Civil cases (involve money or property) ▪ Foreign business dealings covered here o U.S. Claims Court ▪ Public officials can be sued here ▪ Government can be sued in some cases approved by Congress • The United States Supreme Court o Court of last resort most appeals come from the Court of Appeals o Currently 8 associate justices and 1 chief justice o Judicial review – declares congressional or executive act unconstitutional (defined in Marbury v. Madison) o Meets on the first Monday of October each year and usually continues in session through June. o About 6,000 cases apply/yr., only about 100 get full decision Appeals Set in 12 districts or circuits; usually 3 judge panels Hear appeals from district courts Set up to lessen workload of Supreme Court Have appellate jurisdiction Does not always mean a trial About 40,000 cases/yr. • Supreme Court Justices o President appoints; Senate approves o Their term is for Life o Impeached like any other office o Pay cannot be lessened during their term If retire served 15 yrs. they get full pay for life after 65 and have • Marbury v. Madison and Judicial Review o At the very end of his term, President John Adams had made many federal appointments, including William Marbury as justice of the peace in the District of Columbia. o Thomas Jefferson, the new president, refused to recognize the appointment of Marbury. o At the direction of Jefferson, Madison (Secretary of State) refused to deliver Marbury's commission. Marbury sued Madison, and the Supreme Court took the case. o Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that the Judiciary Act of 1789, which spelled out the practice of delivering such commissions for judges and justices of the peace, was unconstitutional because it gave the Supreme Court authority that was denied it by Article III of the Constitution. o The Supreme Court said, the Judiciary Act of 1789 was illegal and not to be followed. o This was the first time the Supreme Court struck down a law because it was unconstitutional. It was the beginning of the practice of Judicial Review. • Process o o o o o o o o to the Supreme Court Federal Indictment Federal Grand Jury Hearing True Bill of Indictment Trial in Federal District Court Verdict by Trial (Petit) Jury Appeal to Courts of Appeals (Circuit Courts) 3 panel court decides to uphold or overturn the verdict Appeal to United States Supreme Court • Process of Hearing Cases by the U.S. Supreme Court o Submit Appeal - In most cases lawyers write an appeal for the court to issue a writ of certiorari. (forces lower courts to send documents from the case to be reviewed) o Appeal Granted - (Rule of Four) 4 of 9 justices agree to put case on docket (schedule). o Submit Brief - Merit Briefs are written legal arguments by lawyers to support one side of a case. ▪ *Amicus Curiae Briefs – friend of the court (interest groups file) o Oral Arguments - the lawyers have the opportunity to give their arguments and ask questions about the case. It is almost always limited to 7 sittings at 30 minutes for each side. (2 weeks long) o Conference - justices discuss and vote on cases. (Wednesday morning and on Friday) o Write Opinions – after voting on the case, each justice may write their opinions. o The Decision is Final • Types of o o o • Judicial Philosophies o Judicial Restraint – the Court limits itself to matters of law and justice as they are brought before them. o Judicial Activism – the Court does not refrain from making policy with its decisions. Opinions – Majority – the decision of the court Dissenting – disagrees and wants to explain why Concurring – agrees with the decision but wants to explain