Ch. 18 Guided Reading and
Review answers
Ch. 18 – section 1 questions
1. What did Article III, Section 1 of the
Constitution create?
• It created the national
judiciary.
2. What are constitutional
courts?
• Federal courts, created by
Congress, which exercise broad
judicial powers (district courts,
Courts of Appeals, Trade Court,
U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Federal Circuit)
3. What are special courts?
• Courts with narrow jurisdiction
4. Under what circumstances may
federal courts hear a case?
a. constitutional issues – wide
variety of cases
b. high seas
c. U.S. officers
d. one of the 50 states
e. a foreign government
f. citizens of different states
5. What is the procedure for the
selection of federal judges?
• Presidential appointment, for
life, approved or rejected by
Senate
6. What is the primary function
of federal judges?
• To hear and decide cases
7. How long are the terms of
judges of constitutional courts?
• life
8. How long are the terms of
judges in special courts?
• 8-15 years
Ch. 18 – Section 1 Quiz
d. 1. one who initiates a
suit
e. 2. the party against
whom a suit is brought
a. 3. cases that can only
be heard in federal
courts have this
c. 4. court in which a case
is first heard has this
b. 5. cases that can be
heard either in federal
or state courts have
this
a. exclusive jurisdiction
b. concurrent jurisdiction
c. original jurisdiction
d. plaintiff
e. defendant
II. Multiple Choice
6. The majority of the cases heard in the
United States each year are heard in
a. district courts
b. state courts
c. appellate courts
d. constitutional courts
7. Special courts are created by
a. Congress
b. the President
c. federal regulatory agencies
d. the states
8. Which of the following does NOT
have significant impact on the
appointments of federal judges?
a. the President’s ideology
b. the leaders of the party to which the
President belongs
c. the senators from the state in which the
appointee will serve
d. the current members of the Supreme Court
9. Judges of the constitutional
courts are
a. appointed to 15-year terms.
b. appointed for life.
c. elected by the Supreme Court
d. appointed to 10-year terms
10. Federal marshals do all of the
following EXCEPT
a. arrest persons accused of federal
crimes
b. serve legal papers
c. execute court orders and decisions
d. try persons charged with certain
minor offenses
Section 2 questions
1. On what basis is the United States
divided into judicial districts?
Each state has 1 district; the more
populated states have more than one
(Texas has 4), also D.C. and Puerto
Rico
2. When and why were the court
of appeals created?
• 1891 – to take some of the load off
the Supreme Court
3. Define:
a. criminal case – some action has been
declared a crime; if a person
commits a crime, society prosecutes
b. civil case – dispute over contract or
patent infringement; also disputes
over rights listed in Constitution
c. docket – list of cases to be heard
Ch. 18 – Section 2 quiz
F 1. About 20% of the cases that come before
federal judges are tried in the district
courts.
T 2. Usually, cases tried in district courts are
heard by a single judge.
F 3. The circuit courts are the only federal
courts that use grand and petit juries.
T 4. Appellate courts hear appeals from the
decisions of federal regulatory agencies.
T 5. The Trade Court hears only civil cases.
II. Multiple Choice
6. District courts cover an assigned
territory that is based primarily on
a. state boundaries
b. population
c. geographic region
d. income level
7. The circuit courts were
created
a. to relieve the Supreme Court of the
burden of hearing most appeals.
b. to relieve the district courts of the burden
of hearing cases involving criminal charges.
c. to handle all cases involving disputes among
citizens of different states.
d. to relieve the district courts of the burden
of hearing civil cases.
8. In what types of cases do the
courts of appeals have original
jurisdiction?
a. civil cases involving more than $250,000
b. no types of cases
c. cases appealing decisions of the state
supreme courts
d. cases in which the U.S. gov’t is the
defendant
9. Cases brought before the courts
of appeals are usually heard by
a. a single judge
b. a panel of three judges
c. a panel of nine judges
d. a panel of twelve judges
10. Which of the following is NOT a
type of case heard by the Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit?
a. an appeal from the Trade Court
b. an appeal from the Court of Veterans
Appeals
c. an appeal from the Court of
Military Appeals
d. an appeal from the Merits Systems
Protection Board
Ch. 18 Section 3 questions
1.
judicial review: power to decide if an act
is unconstitutional
2. In the United States, the court of last
resort in questions of federal law is the
Supreme Court.
3. The first case in which the court used its
power of judicial review was Marbury v.
Madison.
More ch. 18 section 3 questions…
4. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction in
cases involving a state or those affecting
ambassadors.
5. A case is accepted if at least 4 Court
justices agree to place it on the docket.
6. When the Supreme Court hears a case, it
receives written documents called briefs and
hears oral arguments.
Last ch. 18 section 3 question…
7. The opening day of each Supreme
Court term is the first Monday in
October.
Section 3 quiz
d. 1. A justice who agrees with the Opinion of the
Court may nonetheless decide to write a ___.
e. 2. If the Chief Justice agrees with the Opinion of
the Court, he or she decides who will write the
____.
a. 3. When the Supreme Court accepts a case for
review, it issues a ______.
c. 4. Justices who disagree with an Opinion of the
Court may register their views by writing a
________.
b. 5. If an inferior court wants guidance from the
Supreme Court on a particular question of law, it
may issue a ____.