FrontPage: OL on your desk. Describe the 3 levels of the
federal judiciary.
Homework: OL 11.3 due Tuesday
Structure of the Federal Judiciary
Let’s review
We’ve learned about the purpose and history of the
Federal Courts (3rd branch)
 We also learned about the need for a Supreme Court
and that the Framers were split about the need/
desire for lower federal courts
 These are courts that are part of the national
judiciary (underneath the Supreme Court), but
would be located throughout the states…
 What compromise did the Framers agree on to settle
this question?

Article III,
Section 1:
“The judicial power of
the United States,
shall be vested in one
Supreme Court, and
in such inferior
Courts as the
Congress may from
time to time ordain
and establish.”
The Judiciary Act of 1789

What do
you know
about the
Judiciary
Act?
The Basic Structure of the
Federal Judiciary

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The lowest level courts are known as district courts
 First created in 1789…
The 2nd level courts are called Circuit courts
 First actual courts/judgeships created in 1891…
The 3rd level of the federal judiciary is the Supreme Court
itself
 Found in the Constitution…
**There are also several other courts which specialize in
various areas…more on that later.
The Basic Structure of the
Federal Judiciary
Starting at the Bottom
•
When we learned about the executive
branch, we started at the top.

The President is the head of the
executive branch, and basically all of the
agencies and departments look to him
for leadership and direction

In the executive branch, all of the work
and directions proceed from top to
bottom; they follow his orders.

And in the case of the legislative branch, there is really only
one “level”; the House of Representatives and Senate.
Working From the Bottom-Up

The Federal Court system is different, however…
The Supreme Court is really the last court to hear cases
– The “court of last resort”
 The SC, in fact, cannot “act”
in the way that the President or
Congress can…it is a “passive”
group.

**Most of the cases that reach the SC do so by working “up” through
the other two levels of the federal court system
First (lowest) level
District Courts

These are called the “workhorses of the federal judiciary”
 Why do you think this is?

The text says district courts function as…?
 What is their “jurisdiction” (area of control)?

Today the original number (?) has grown to include how
many total federal judicial districts?
 How many districts must each state have?
• Caseload (somewhat determined by pop.)
determines how many districts a state has…
 Is there always only 1 judge per district?
PA has 3 federal districts…
The western district of PA has 19
total justices and magistrates…

There are 13 district justices, and 6 district
magistrates
 Both can hear “non-prisoner civil cases”
 The justices hear death penalty, bankruptcy and
other specific, more important matters
 Magistrates hear prisoner civil cases, and nondeath penalty cases
California’s 4 Judicial
districts

California has
over 100
judges and
magistrates…

FYI – North
Dakota has 4
judges and 3
magistrates
The Last Word…?

Most federal district court opinions are the final
word in the cases….

But…if a side feels that the decision was incorrect,
or feels it did not receive a fair hearing, it may
appeal the case to the next level of the federal
judiciary
“Circuit” (Appeals) Courts

Why were these “circuit courts” (really the
judgeships) established in 1891?
A cartoon from
1885 depicts
Supreme
Court justices
being deluged
with petitions
to review cases
from district
courts.
Circuit (Appeals) Courts

What are the function and jurisdiction of the Circuit
courts?
 Appeal = request to review the decision of a
lower court
 What kind of jurisdiction do these courts have?

How many circuits are there in the US?
Federal Circuits and Districts
There are 23 circuit court judges
in the 3rd circuit court of appeals

Typically, a panel of judges will hear
appeals and make their decision.
Circuit Court Decisions

What 3 things can a
circuit court do with a
case that has been
appealed?

Unless appealed to the
SC, these decisions are
final
Constitutional Courts
The district, circuit and Supreme Courts
are considered “Constitutional” courts,
because they were created by Congress
using the power given to it by Article III,
as stated above
 There are other, more “independent
courts” that are still part of the federal
judiciary…
 These are called “legislative courts”

“Legislative”
Courts

Created under Article I (legislative branch) to help
Congress carry out its powers…
 E.g., Congress power to tax enables it to create the US
Tax Court
 Also, Congress power to regulate the armed forces
allows it to create the Court of Military Appeals.
The Legislative Courts







US Claims Court– Claims against the US for money
damages
US Tax Court - Hears cases relating to federal taxes
US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces - Hears cases
dealing with soldiers/military law
US Territorial Courts - Hear cases in US territories (i.e.,
Guam, Puerto Rico)
US Court of International Trade – tariffs and other issues
Court of Veterans Appeals – dealing with vet issues
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) –
Approves wiretaps for intelligence purposes (w/out search
warrant, not made public)
The Complex Structure of the
Federal Judiciary
Review






The lowest level courts in the federal judiciary are…?
 They have _____________ jurisdiction.
There are ____ districts. PA has…?
 At least ___ per state….?
The 2nd level courts in the federal judiciary are…?
 They have _____________ jurisdiction.
There are ___ circuits total.
 PA is in the ___ circuit.
What type of courts are the SC, Circuit and district courts?
Under what authority were legislative courts created?
 Give an example…