THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY
 Introduction/Terminology
 Adversarial System
 Either/Or

criminal law v. civil law

trial v. oral argument

statues v. common law

federal v. state courts

original jurisdiction v. appellate jurisdiction

exclusive v. concurrent jurisdiction
 Litigants

Judges/justices play passive role

Plaintiffs

Defendants

Role of interest groups

Primary role

Amicus curiae
 “standing to sue”
 Class action suits
 Justiciable disputes
 Structure of the Federal Judiciary System
 Constitution—originally had:
 Judiciary Act of 1789
 Constitutional Courts
 Legislative Courts

Specific jurisdiction

Stems from:

Examples:

Judges term:
 FOCUS: Constitutional Courts

Original jurisdiction determine:

Appellate jurisdiction

Only concerned with:

State to federal?
 US Districts Courts (91)

Overview:

Jurisdiction:

Statistics:

Diversity of citizenship cases:

“Players”

Clerks, bailiffs, stenographers, court reporters, probation officers, federal marshals

Magistrates:

US Attorney
 US Court of Appeals (Circuit Court of Appeals)
 appeals from:
 12 Judicial Circuits

4th Circuit Court of Appeal

9th Circuit Court of Appeal

5th Circuit Court of Appeal
 3 judge panels v. “en banc”
 Focus:
 NO trial—hearing only
 Precedent:
 US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

13th created in 1982

12 judges

Specialized cases
 US Supreme Court
 Functions

National supremacy of law

Disputes

Uniformity

1 Chief Justice & 8 Associate Justices

Total number
 Jurisdiction (see Table 16.1, page 474)

Original

Appellate

Federal route

State route
The Politics of Judicial Selection
 Nomination and confirmation
 Constitutional insulation from public/political pressure—federal judges/justices
 Power held by President
 Power held by Senate
 The Lower Courts
 Senatorial courtesy (unwritten tradition)

Power of ONE senator to void nomination

District court nominees

Circuit court of appeal nominee
 Vacancy occurs—submission of candidates’ names to Attorney General to be given to President
 Vetting of candidates
 Self-promotion
 District court v. court of appeal
 Judicial nominations and partisanship politics
 Tradition
 Change

Courts of appeal (trickled down to district courts)

Role of interest groups

“recess appointments”

Use of filibuster

Cloture vote – November 2013
 Nomination to the Supreme Court
 Presidential legacy
 Vacancy . . . 1 every 2 years—VARIES!
 Vetting

Role of Senate Judiciary Committee

Pre/post 1960s

Johnson, Nixon & Reagan

HW Bush and Clarence Thomas

Clinton

GW Bush
 John Roberts
 Harriet Miers
 Samuel Alito

Obama & Sonia Sotomayor (2009) and Elena Kagan (2010)

Opposition most likely if:

Opposition is supposed to based on: