The Federal Court System
I.
The Basics
A.
B.
C.
Jurisdiction: the authority of a court to hear and decide a case
Plaintiff:
the person who files the suit (prosecutor)
Defendant: the person whom the complaint is against
D. Criminal vs. Civil cases
1.
Criminal cases: the defendant is tried for committing a crime defined by law (ex: murder)
2.
Civil cases: case dealing with a non-criminal dispute (ex: contract dispute)
E. Docket: list of cases to be heard
F. Redress: satisfaction of a claim payment
II.
The Federal Court System
A. No national courts existed under the Articles of Confederation
1.
Led to many problems and chaos
2.
The Constitution fixed this problem  created to solve problems between the states before
B. Dual court system
1.
National judiciary
a. Ex: the Supreme Court and other federal courts
2.
Each State has its own court system too
a. All cases not heard in federal courts are in the jurisdiction of State courts
C. Two types of federal courts
1.
Supreme Court  (Supreme / Highest court in the land)
2.
Inferior courts: lower federal courts beneath the Supreme Court
a. Constitutional courts
i. Ex: court of appeals
ii. When a case comes up in front of the Ct. of Appeal it is heard by 3 judges usually
b. Special courts
i. Sometimes called “legislative courts”
ii. Ex: U.S. Tax Court
III.
Federal Court Jurisdiction
A. Federal courts may hear any case based on:
1.
The subject matter
2.
The parties involved
B. Types of jurisdiction
1.
Exclusive jurisdiction
May only be heard in federal courts
Ex: those charged w/ federal crimes
like copyright infringement
2.
Concurrent jurisdiction
Both the federal and State courts can hear a case
Ex: cases involving citizens of different States
3.
Original jurisdiction
A court that hears a case first
Ex: federal district courts
4.
Appellate jurisdiction
A court that hears a case on appeal
Ex: courts of appeal
5.
The Supreme
Court exercises both original and appellate jurisdiction
*
IV.
Appointment of Judges
A. The President appoints federal judges and the Senate confirms them
1.
Senatorial courtesy
2.
A President often chooses judges with views that are similar to his views….
B. Judicial activists vs. Judicial restraint
1.
Judicial activists: believe a judge should use his or her position to promote a certain cause
2.
Judicial restraint: believe that judges should defer to the executive and legislative branches
not legislate from the bench
C. Terms and pay
1.
2.
$
Supreme Court and inferior court justices serve for life unless :
--They Resign
(This was set in the US CONSTITUTION)
--They are Impeached (rarely done)
3.
Special Court judges have term limits
4.
Judges are paid and compensated well
D. Court officers
1.
Federal magistrate
2.
U.S. Marshals
V.
The Inferior Courts
A. District Courts
1.
2.
3.
4.
Created by the Judiciary Act of 1789
94 federal districts
Have original jurisdiction in both criminal and civil cases
Regularly use grand juries
B. The Court of Appeals
1.
Serve as the “gatekeeper” of cases to be heard by the Supreme Court
2.
3.
4.
13 courts of appeal
w/ 179 federal judges
There are circuit judges and also one member of the Supreme Court and for each district
Have only appellate jurisdiction
C. Other constitutional courts
1.
Court of International Trade
2.
The Court of Appeals for the Federal Court
VI. The Supreme Court
A. The Supreme Court is the final authority on the law
B. Members
(9 Total)
The Pres looks for these traits  Great attorneys/sitting judges/ party affiliates
1.
1 Chief Justice
2.
a. Established by the Supreme Court
b. Currently is John Roberts
8 Associate Justices
a. The number has changed throughout history because it is set by Congress
PAY :
Chief Justice, Supreme Court,
$217,400.
Associate Justices, Supreme Court, $208,100.
and
C. Judicial review
1.
2.
The power of a court to determine the constitutionality of a government action
Not expressly stated in the Constitution
3.
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
a.
b.
c.
d.
Established the Supreme Court’s power of judicial review
Out-going President Adams appointed several “midnight judges” including William Marbury
The Court found a portion of the Judiciary Act of 1789 to be unconstitutional- 1st time an act
of Congress was found to be unconstitutional
This case is the reason why the Supreme Court is so important today
D. Supreme Court jurisdiction
1.
2.
3.
Both original and appellate jurisdiction
Has original jurisdiction for cases between States and ambassadors
Mostly hears appeals from lower courts
E. How cases reach the Supreme Court
1.
Thousands of cases go to the Court but it decides on only a few hundred
a. “The rule of four”: 4 of 9 justices must agree on it to go on the docket
b. Of these heard, most are just brief- only about 100 have a full-blown hearing
2.
Writ of certiorari
a.
b.
3.
An order by a higher court to send up a record in a given case for review
How must cases reach the Supreme Court
Certificate
a.
b.
The lower court is not clear on a legal question and they ask the Supreme Court to clarify
Fairly rare
F. How the Supreme Court operates
1.
Meets from October to June or July
2.
Oral arguments
3.
4.
5.
a. Lawyers are only given 30 minutes
Briefs
a. Written documents filed with the Court before oral arguments begin
b. Amicus curiae briefs
i. “Friend of the court”
ii. Filed by persons or groups who are not actually parties in the cases
c. Solicitor General
i. The Federal Government’s chief lawyer
ii. Represents the United States in all cases before the Supreme Court
The Court in conference
a. Secret conference among the justices to review the case
b. Presentations are made by the justices in order of seniority
Opinions
a. Majority opinion
i. The official opinion of the Supreme Court
ii. Written by whoever the Chief Justice assigns
iii. Often include precedents, or examples to be followed in similar cases
b. Concurring opinion
Part of the majority opinion but it emphasizes a point not made in the majority opinion
c. Dissenting opinion
i.
Does not agree with the Court’s majority opinion
The Special Courts
-----Sometimes known as legislative courts
The Court of Federal Claims
The Territorial Courts
The District of Columbia Courts
The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
Military Tribunals
The Court of Appeals for Veterans’ Claims
The United States Tax Court