Court Systems and Practices
1
History, Structure and Function
of the American Legal System
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Vocabulary
2
Jurisdiction
 The authority of a court to hear and decide cases
within an area of the law or a geographical
territory
Appeal
 A review of lower court proceedings by a higher
court
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History of the Federal Court System
3
 Article III of the U.S. Constitution
 Established a federal court system
 Created by Congress on Sept 24th, 1789
 Judiciary Act of 1789
 Passed by Congress
 Established 13 courts (1 for each of the original states)
 Since 1789
 Numerous Judiciary Acts passed that continue to define the
American Court System
 The Supreme Court originally had 6 justices
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Structure of the Federal Court System
4
 Begins with the Magistrate Court
 Ends with the Supreme Court
Supreme
Court
Appellate Courts
Trial Courts
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Structure of the Federal Court System
5
 Magistrate Courts
o Created by the Federal Magistrate’s Act of 1968
 Trial Courts
o Also called U.S. District Courts
o 95 U.S. District Courts covering the United
States and its territories
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Structure of the Federal Court System
6
 Court of Appeals
 Also known as Appeals Court, Appellate Court, and
Circuit Courts
 13 U.S. circuit courts
 Over 165 federal courts of appeals judges
 Does NOT conduct a jury trial
 Consists of a panel of judges, usually 3
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Structure of the Federal Court System
7
 U.S. Supreme Court
 Highest court in the United States
 Consists of 9 justices
 Decisions are final and CANNOT be overruled
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Function of the Federal Court System
8
 Magistrate Courts
 Try Class A misdemeanors and petty offences
 Perform duties such as issuing warrants, arraignments,
etc.
 Trial Courts
Hear both criminal and civil cases
 Majority of cases are civil

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Function of the Federal Court System
9
 Court of Appeals
1. Hear appeals from the U.S. District Courts
2. The defendant can appeal their case based on a
claim that:
 They
were denied a fair trial OR
 The law they were convicted under was
unconstitutional
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Function of the Federal Court System
10
 Court of Appeals (continued)
3. The court is to determine:
 If the district judge made a judicial error
 If the error should have substantially
affected the court’s decision
 If the answer is “no” to both questions


The appeal is dismissed
If the answer is “yes” to one of the questions

The court will review the appeal and issue a ruling
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Function of the Federal Court System
11
 U.S. Supreme Court
 Only
agrees to decide cases where there is
A split of opinion among the courts of appeal OR
 An important constitutional question or issue of federal
law needs to be clarified

 Decides
which cases it will hear
 Legally mediates for lawsuits
Between states AND
 Between the United States and foreign countries

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Function of the Federal Court System
12
 U.S. Supreme Court (continued)
 Final
authority for legal opinions binding on the
federal government
 The lower courts have to fall in line with that
ruling
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Function of the Federal Court System
13
 U.S. Supreme Court (continued)
 The Court MUST review cases when:
 A federal court has held an act of Congress to be
unconstitutional
 A U.S. Court of Appeals has found a state statute to be
unconstitutional
 A state’s highest court of appeals has ruled a federal
law to be unconstitutional
 An individual’s challenge to a state statute on federal
constitutional grounds is upheld by a state’s highest
court of appeals
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History of the State Court System
14
 1836- the Texas Supreme Court was established
after the Texas Revolution
 1845- the Supreme Court was restructured
 1850- the offices of the Supreme Court were filled
by elections
 1876- the Court of Appeals was created to deal with
criminal cases and relieve the case load of the
Supreme Court; later renamed the Court of
Criminal Appeals
 1980- the Courts of Civil Appeals, renamed Courts
of Appeals; designed to relieve the Court of
Criminal Appeals caseload
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Structure of the State Court System
15
Begins with the Justice or Municipal
Courts
 Ends with the Texas Supreme Court or the
Court of Criminal Appeals






Texas Supreme Court or Court of Criminal Appeals
Courts of Appeals
District Courts
County Courts
Justice Courts or Municipal Courts
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Structure of the State Court System
16
Justice or Municipal Courts



821 Justice Courts with 821 judges
913 Municipal Courts with 1,458 judges
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Structure of the State Court System
17
 County Courts

499 courts
 254 constitutional county courts
 227 statutory county courts
 18 statutory probate courts
 District Courts

449 courts
 449 judges
 352 districts (cover one county)
 97 districts (cover more than one county)
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Structure of the State Court System
18
 Court of Appeals


14 courts
80 justices
 Texas Supreme Court and the
Court of Criminal Appeals

Have only 9 justices
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Function of the State Court System
19
 Justice Courts
Handle crimes that are punishable by fine only
Handle civil issues




Issuing marriage licenses
Settling small claims suits
 Municipal Courts

Handle crimes that are punishable by fine only
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Function of the State Court System
20
 County Courts
Constitutional County Courts




Have appellate jurisdiction over the justice and
municipal courts
Preside over Class A and Class B Misdemeanors
Deal with civil trials involving “moderate”
amounts of money
Statutory County Courts and Statutory
Probate Courts


These courts deal with civil matters.
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Structure of the State Court System
21
District Courts




Judges must be licensed attorneys.
Have original jurisdiction over felony cases
Deal in civil disputes between $200-$500, and
cases dealing with divorce, title to land, and
contested elections
Court of Appeals


Have intermediate appellate jurisdiction in
criminal and civil cases
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Structure of the State Court System
22
 Texas Supreme Court and Texas Court of
Criminal Appeals
 Texas Supreme Court



Has final appellate jurisdiction in civil cases
Responsible for licensing attorneys and attorney
discipline
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

Has final appellate jurisdiction in criminal cases
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Resources
23
 Outline of the U.S. Legal System, Bureau of
International Information Programs, United
States Department of State, 2004,
http://www.america.gov/media/pdf/books/legalotln.pdf
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