The Courts

Question 1

Which article in the articles of confederation called for the creation of “one supreme Court”

Answer 1

Article III

Question 2

What does Article III of the articles of confederation distinguish between?

Answer 2

It distinguishes which are matters of original jurisdiction and which are for appellate jurisdiction.

Question 3

original jurisdiction

Answer 3

a case is heard for the first time,

Question 4

appellate jurisdiction

Answer 4

a court hears a case on appeal from a lower court and may change the lower court’s decision.

Question 5

What specific cases can the court use original jurisdiction?

Answer 5

Between states, between the US and foreign ambassadors, or ministers

Question 6

In explaining the importance of an independent judiciary separated from the other branches of government, Hamilton said ___________ was a key role of the courts as they seek to protect people from unjust laws.

Answer 6

“interpretation”

Question 7

True or false: Alexander Hamilton said that the Judicary Branch was the most dangerous

Answer 7

False (because it had “no influence over either the sword or the purse,” it had “neither force nor will, but merely judgment.”)

Question 8

How can the Supreme Court be described today?

Answer 8

a key component of the nation’s constitutional democracy, finding its place as the chief interpreter of the Constitution and the equal of the other two branches, though still checked and balanced by them.

Question 9

The framework for the current federal judicial system was laid out during the first session of the first U.S. Congress.

Answer 9

Judiciary Act of 1789

Question 10

the basic structure of the judicial branch

Answer 10

At the lowest level are the district courts, where federal cases are tried. A losing party may appeal to the circuit courts, or U.S. courts of appeals, where the decision is reviewed. Still further, appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is possible, but of the thousands of petitions for appeal, the Supreme Court will typically hear fewer than one hundred a year.3

Question 11

Why does the the basic structure of the judicial branch remain?

Answer 11

It was set so early on

Question 12

Where did the Supreme court start?

Answer 12

New York in 1790,

Question 13

What did the early supreme court focus on?

Answer 13

establishing its rules and procedures and perhaps trying to carve its place as the new government’s third branch.

Question 14

Early diffuculty for the supreme court

Answer 14

They didn’t have a official building so they had trouble getting the justices to show up. Even when the fed gov moved to the nations capital in 1800, the Court shared a space with Congress in the Capitol.

Question 15

How did the court get it’s own building

Answer 15

Court’s 146th that Congress, at the urging of Chief Justice, and former pres, William Howard Taft, provided designation and funding for the Supreme Court’s building, “on a scale in keeping with the importance and dignity of the Court and the Judiciary as a coequal, independent branch of the federal government.”

Question 16

Chisholm v. Georgia (1793),

Answer 16

the justices ruled that the federal courts could hear cases brought by a citizen of one state against a citizen of another state, and that Article III, Section 2, of the Constitution did not protect the states from facing such an interstate lawsuit.

Question 17

The decision of Chisolm v. Georgia was overturned by which amendment?

Answer 17

the Court ruled that federal courts could hear cases where a person from one state sued someone from another state. They believed Article III, Section 2, of the Constitution didn’t protect states from such lawsuits. However, this decision was quickly overturned by the Eleventh Amendment in 1794, ratified in 1795. The Eleventh Amendment prevented federal courts from hearing cases where citizens of one state sued another state, or citizens of a foreign country. This move signaled that Congress had the power to adjust the courts’ jurisdiction, showing its readiness to use this authority.

Question 18

First chief justice

Answer 18

John Jay

Question 19

Leaving of John Jay and entry of John Marshall

Answer 19

John Jay resigned from his position of first chief justice. This might have made the Court in a state of “natural feebleness” but John Marshall became the 4th chief justice.
- Madison vs Maybury was going on during transfer of power

Question 20

John Marshall

Answer 20

• defined modern court
• clarifyies courts power
• strengthened its roll
• served thirty for year

Question 21

judicial review

Answer 21

Judicial review is the power of the courts, as part of the system of checks and balances, to look at actions taken by the other branches of government and the states and determine whether they are constitutional.

Question 22

Which case was judicial review established?

Answer 22

in the Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison, when, for the first time, the Court declared an act of Congress to be unconstitutional.

Question 23

True or false: The power of judicial review is confined to the Supreme Court

Answer 23

False. It is is also exercised by the lower federal courts and even the state courts.

Question 24

If the courts find an action to be unconstitutional, what happens to it?

Answer 24

it becomes null and void

Question 26

Common law

Answer 26

Common law refers to a legal system where decisions made by judges in previous cases, known as precedents, play a significant role in determining the outcome of current or future cases.

Question 27

What system does common law contrast with?

Answer 27

Code law

Question 28

The process from the State Trial Courts to the US Supreme Court

Answer 28

1.State Trial Court 2. Intermediate Appellate Courts 3. State Supreme Courts 4. US Supreme Court

Question 29

Compare congress and president, and the supreme court in their role as policy makers

Answer 29

Congress and pres- consider borad qs of public policy and their costs and benefits courts consider specific cases with narrower questions, thus enabling them to focus more closely than other government institutions on the exact context of the individuals, groups, or issues affected by the decision.

Question 30

Affordable Care Act

Answer 30

a statute that brought significant changes to the nation’s healthcare system.

Question 31

By what means could the Supreme Court have thrown out Obama Care

Answer 31

juidicial review

Question 32

in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby

Answer 32

for religious reasons, some for-profit corporations could be exempt from the requirement that employers provide insurance coverage of contraceptives for their female employees.

Question 33

King v. Burwell

Answer 33

the Court upheld the ability of the federal government to provide tax credits for people who bought their health insurance through an exchange created by the law.

Question 34

How does the Supreme Court serve as an umpire in ACA (affordable care act) cases

Answer 34

upholding the law and some of its provisions on one hand, but ruling some aspects of it unconstitutional on the other. Both supporters and opponents of the law have claimed victory and faced defeat.

Question 35

What might a citizen or group do that feels mistreated?

Answer 35

Organizing protests, garnering special interest group support, and changing laws through the legislative and executive branches are all possible, but an individual is most likely to find the courts especially well-suited to analyzing the particulars of a case.

Question 36

is judicial reiview a power given to the Supreme Court in the constitution?

Answer 36

no it's a power to which Hamilton had referred but that is not expressly mentioned in the Constitution.

Question 37

The adversarial judicial system comes from which tradition?

Answer 37

The common law tradition

Question 38

T/F The federal court system is most often called upon when a case touches on constitutional rights.

Answer 38

true

Question 39

Brown v. Board of Education

Answer 39

Court ordered desegregation in schools

Question 40

T/F The courts usually grant rights to a person instantly and upon request.

Answer 40

False

Question 41

What does the supreme court try to balance?

Answer 41

they still balance that expansion with the government’s need to govern, provide for the common good, and serve a broader societal purpose.

Question 42

Bucklew v. Precythe

Answer 42

the court again rejected an Eighth Amendment claim of the death penalty as torture.

Question 43

The courts before the supreme court

Answer 43

the states had courts. Each of the 13 colonies also had courts.

Question 44

dual courts

Answer 44

, with courts at both the national and state levels.

Question 46

The process from the US District Courts to the US Supreme Court

Answer 46

1. US District Courts 2. US Courts of Appeals 3. US Supreme Court

Question 47

T/F The Federal Government has strict guidelines for state courts in the way they organize themselves, to avoid overlap

Answer 47

False. state and federal court systems sometimes intersect and overlap each other, and no two states are exactly alike when it comes to the organization of their courts. Since a state’s court system is created by the state itself, each one differs in structure, the number of courts, and even name and jurisdiction.

Question 48

Cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court come from two primary pathways:

Answer 48

the circuit courts, or U.S. courts of appeals (after the cases have originated in the federal district courts), and (2) state supreme courts (when there is a substantive federal question in the case).

Question 49

Courts hear two different types of disputes:

Answer 49

criminal and civil.

Question 50

What happens under criminal law

Answer 50

governments establish rules and punishments; laws define conduct that is prohibited because it can harm others and impose punishment for committing such an act.

Question 51

What do civil law cases involve?

Answer 51

two or more private (non-government) parties, at least one of whom alleges harm or injury committed by the other.

Question 52

T/F the Supreme Court typically hears fewer then 100 cases a year

Answer 52

true

Question 53

_________ courts really are the core of the U.S. judicial system,

Answer 53

state

Question 54

What kinds of cases are heard by state courts?

Answer 54

Most crimes and criminal activity, such as robbery, rape, and murder, are violations of state laws, and cases are thus heard by state courts. State courts also handle civil matters; personal injury, malpractice, divorce, family, juvenile, probate, and contract disputes and real estate cases, to name just a few, are usually state-level cases.

Question 55

What kind of cases do the fedral courts hear?

Answer 55

The federal courts, on the other hand, will hear any case that involves a foreign government, patent or copyright infringement, Native American rights, maritime law, bankruptcy, or a controversy between two or more states. Cases arising from activities across state lines (interstate commerce) are also subject to federal court jurisdiction, as are cases in which the United States is a party. A dispute between two parties not from the same state or nation and in which damages of at least $75,000 are claimed is handled at the federal level.

Question 56

diversity of citizenship case.

Answer 56

A dispute between two parties not from the same state or nation and in which damages of at least $75,000 are claimed

Question 57

t/f

Answer 57

However, some cases cut across the dual court system and may end up being heard in both state and federal courts.

Question 58

Reliance on _________ has enabled the federal courts to operate with logic and consistency that has helped validate their role as the key interpreters of the Constitution and the law—a

Answer 58

precedent

Question 59

the trial courts of the national system, in which federal cases are tried, witness testimony is heard, and evidence is presented.

Answer 59

courts of appeals, or circuit courts

Question 60

These are the trial courts of the national system, in which federal cases are tried, witness testimony is heard, and evidence is presented.

Answer 60

district courts

Question 61

T/F No district court crosses state lines, and a single judge oversees each one. Some cases are heard by a jury, and some are not.

Answer 61

True

Question 62

T/F The US Supreme Court cannot overrule rulings by the court of appeals (aka circuit courts)

Answer 62

False

Question 63

T/F Article 3 of the constitution calls for district courts?

Answer 63

False

Question 64

Who established district courts and narrowly defined their jurisdiction, at first limiting them to handling only cases that arose within the district.

Answer 64

Congress

Question 65

T/F the jurisdiction of the district courts has expanded over time?

Answer 65

True

Question 66

Judicial Code of 1911

Answer 66

The Judicial Code of 1911 was the most expansive act concerning the judiciary ever passed by Congress. It finally abolished all the circuit courts, transferring all their jurisdiction to the district courts, thereby making them the first level of the federal judiciary in every case.

Question 67

What did the circuit courts start out as?

Answer 67

trial courts for most federal criminal cases and for some civil suits, including those initiated by the United States and those involving citizens of different states.

Question 68

How did circuit courts work before they had their own judges?

Answer 68

the local district judge and two Supreme Court justices formed each circuit court panel.

Question 69

Do circuit courts exercise appellate juridiction?

Answer 69

Circuit courts also exercised appellate jurisdiction over most civil suits that originated in the district courts; however, that role ended in 1891, and their appellate jurisdiction was turned over to the newly created circuit courts, or U.S. courts of appeals.

Question 70

How many justies on the supreme court?

Answer 70

9

Question 71

How many chief justices of the nine justices on the supreme court?

Answer 71

1

Question 72

How many associate justices of the nine justices on the supreme court?

Answer 72

8

Question 73

How many justices on circuit courts?

Answer 73

3

Question 74

How many justices on federal district courts?

Answer 74

1

Question 75

What principle does the Supreme Court operate?

Answer 75

stare decisis

Question 76

stare decisis

Answer 76

which means that today’s decisions are based largely on rulings from the past, and tomorrow’s rulings rely on what is decided today.

Question 77

“Adherence to precedent must then be the rule rather than the exception if litigants are to have faith in the even-handed administration of justice in the courts.” What is this quote by Benjamin Cardozo reffering to?

Answer 77

Stare decsis

Question 78

When the legal facts of one case are the same as the legal facts of another, ____________dictates that they should be decided the same way, and judges are reluctant to disregard precedent without justification.

Answer 78

stare decisis

Question 79

Plessey v. Ferguson (1896),

Answer 79

which brought the doctrine of “separate but equal”

Question 80

How are judges chosen at the federal level?

Answer 80

At the federal level, the president nominates a candidate to a judgeship or justice position, and the nominee must be confirmed by a majority vote in the U.S. Senate, a function of the Senate’s “advice and consent” role.

Question 81

T/F Judges can serve up to 2 terms in national courts

Answer 81

False (All judges and justices in the national courts serve lifetime terms of office.)

Question 82

What happens after the preisident chooses a nominee

Answer 82

The president’s nominee is then discussed (and sometimes hotly debated) in the Senate Judiciary Committee. After a committee vote, the candidate must be confirmed by a majority vote of the full Senate. He or she is then sworn in, taking an oath of office to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the United States.

Question 83

senatorial courtesy

Answer 83

senators exert considerable influence on the selection of judges in their state, especially those senators who share a party affiliation with the president.

Question 84

What happens when a vacancy occurs in a lower federal court, by custom

Answer 84

the president consults with that state’s U.S. senators before making a nomination.

Question 85

T/F It's unheard of for a president to nominate a judge that doesn't align with their party

Answer 85

False

Question 86

Who are these poeple: Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan

Answer 86

Current liberal leaning Supreme Court Justices

Question 87

Who are these people: Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, Roberts

Answer 87

Current conservative leaning Supreme Court Justices

Question 88

Current Supreme Court Justice

Answer 88

Roberts

Question 89

People who work for the Supreme Court Justice

Answer 89

Each justice has three or four law clerks, recent law school graduates who temporarily work for the justice, do research, help prepare the justice with background information, and assist with the writing of opinions.

Question 90

annual session of Supreme Court

Answer 90

begins its annual session on the first Monday in October and ends late the following June.

Question 91

docket

Answer 91

which is the list of cases scheduled on the Court’s calendar. The Court typically accepts fewer than 2 percent of the as many as ten thousand cases it is asked to review every year.49

Question 92

How are court names listed?

Answer 92

Italics. Winning party written first.

Question 93

writ of certiorari

Answer 93

a request that the lower court send up its record of the case for review.

Question 94

What happens once a writ of ceriorari is granted?

Answer 94

the case is scheduled on the Court’s docket.

Question 95

How many judges must vote to accept a case?

Answer 95

4

Question 96

Why might the court grant certiorari?

Answer 96

- Because there is an issue among the lower courts - Because there is more interest group activity around it - media attention - influence from the solicitor general

Question 97

solicitor general

Answer 97

the lawyer who represents the federal government before the Supreme Court: He or she decides which cases (in which the United States is a party) should be appealed from the lower courts and personally approves each one presented

Question 98

What happens once a case has been placed on the docket

Answer 98

briefs, or short arguments explaining each party’s view of the case, must be submitted—first by the petitioner putting forth the case, then by the respondent.

Question 99

What happens once the initial briefs have been filled?

Answer 99

both parties may file subsequent briefs in response to the first.

Question 100

Likewise, people and groups that are not party to the case but are interested in its outcome, may ________________________________ giving their opinion, analysis, and recommendations about how the Court should rule.

Answer 100

file an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief

Question 101

What happens in the supreme court from October through April

Answer 101

oral arguments

Question 102

Describe what happens durring oral arguments

Answer 102

each side’s lawyers have thirty minutes to make their legal case, though the justices often interrupt the presentations with questions.

Question 103

What do justices consider the purpose of oral arguments

Answer 103

not as a forum for a lawyer to restate the merits of the case as written in the briefs, but as an opportunity to get answers to any questions they may have.

Question 104

What does the soliter general do When the United States is party to a case

Answer 104

, the solicitor general (or one of the solicitor general's assistants) will argue the government’s position; even in other cases, the solicitor general may still be given time to express the government’s position on the dispute.

Question 105

What happens When oral arguments have been concluded,

Answer 105

When oral arguments have been concluded, the justices have to decide the case,

Question 106

Where do justices decide a case?

Answer 106

In a conference

Question 107

T/F The conference is also a time to discuss petitions for certiorari

Answer 107

True (but for those cases already heard, each justice may state their views on the case, ask questions, or raise concerns)

Question 108

Describe the sequence of events tha takes place in a conference

Answer 108

The chief justice speaks first about a case, then each justice speaks in turn, in descending order of seniority, ending with the most recently appointed justice.60 The judges take an initial vote in private before the official announcement of their decisions is made public.

Question 109

T/F Oral arguments are not open to the public, but cameras are allowed in the courtroom,

Answer 109

False. Oral arguments are open to the public, but cameras are not allowed in the courtroom,

Question 110

How do the justices make a decision

Answer 110

majority opinion

Question 111

When might a tie vote occur in the Supreme court

Answer 111

A tied vote is rare but can occur at a time of vacancy, absence, or abstention from a case, perhaps where there is a conflict of interest.

Question 112

What happens in the event of a tied vote?

Answer 112

A tied vote is rare but can occur at a time of vacancy, absence, or abstention from a case, perhaps where there is a conflict of interest.

Question 113

Which justice writes the opinion

Answer 113

If in the majority, the chief justice decides who will write the opinion. If not, then the most senior justice ruling with the majority chooses the writer.

Question 114

T/F Any justice who disagrees with the majority may write a separate dissenting opinion.

Answer 114

True

Question 114

When can a judge write a concurring opinion.

Answer 114

If a justice agrees with the outcome of the case but not with the majority’s reasoning in it, that justice may write a concurring opinion.

Question 115

Releasing of court decisions

Answer 115

Court decisions are released at different times throughout the Court’s term, but all opinions are announced publicly before the Court adjourns for the summer.

Question 116

Judicial activism

Answer 116

the need to defend individual rights and liberties, and they aim to stop actions and laws by other branches of government that they see as infringing on these rights. A judge or justice who views the role with an activist lens is more likely to use judicial power to broaden personal liberty, justice, and equality.

Question 117

judicial restraint

Answer 117

the tendency to defer decisions (and thus policymaking) to the elected branches of government and stay focused on a narrower interpretation of the Bill of Rights. These justices are less likely to strike down actions or laws as unconstitutional and are less likely to focus on the expansion of individual liberties.

Question 118

T/F While it is typically the case that liberal actions are described as unnecessarily activist, conservative decisions can be activist as well.

Answer 118

True

Question 119

Critics of the judiciary often deride activist courts for involving themselves too heavily in certain matters because...

Answer 119

they believe they are better left to the elected legislative and executive branches.

Question 120

How can the president ifluence the court

Answer 120

the solicitor general’s involvement or through the submission of amicus briefs in cases in which the United States is not a party.

Question 121

How does Congress check the Supreme Court

Answer 121

It retains the power to modify the federal court structure and its appellate jurisdiction, and the Senate may accept or reject presidential nominees to the federal courts. Faced with a court ruling that overturns one of its laws, Congress may rewrite the law or even begin a constitutional amendment process.

Question 122

The most significant check on the Supreme Court is

Answer 122

is executive and legislative leverage over the implementation and enforcement of its rulings. (The Court relies on the executive to implement or enforce its decisions and on the legislative branch to fund them. As the Jackson and Lincoln stories indicate, presidents may simply ignore decisions of the Court, and Congress may withhold funding needed for implementation and enforcement.)

Question 123

judicial implementation

Answer 123

executive and legislative leverage over the implementation and enforcement of its rulings.

Question 124

T/F While it is true that courts play a major role in policymaking, they have no mechanism to make their rulings a reality.

Answer 124

True (The Court relies on the executive to implement or enforce its decisions and on the legislative branch to fund them. As the Jackson and Lincoln stories indicate, presidents may simply ignore decisions of the Court, and Congress may withhold funding needed for implementation and enforcement.)