Name _____________________________________
Block ________ Date ______________________
Government
Chapter 14: The Judiciary
Homework
(Answer need to be typed.) (84 pts)
Chapter Objectives:
 Present and defend a scriptural definition of justice.
 Explain the structure of the United States judicial system
 Explain the difference between original and appellate jurisdiction.
 List the responsibilities of the different levels of the federal judiciary.
 Discuss the workings of the Supreme Court.
 Differentiate between the selection and responsibilities of state and federal judges.
 Define and differentiate between judicial restraint and judicial activism.
Supreme Court Political Cartoons: Read the following political cartoons and answer the set of
questions for both cartoons. (5 pts)
1. Are there symbols in the cartoon? If
so, what are they and what do they
represent? (1 pt.)
2. What is the cartoonist’s opinion about
the topic portrayed in the cartoon? (2
pts)
3. Do you agree or disagree with the
cartoonist’s opinion? Explain your
answer. (2 pts)
Supreme Court Political Cartoons: Read the following political cartoons and answer the set of
questions for both cartoons. (9 pts)
1. Are there symbols in the cartoon? What are they and what do they represent? (5 pts)
2. What is the cartoonist’s opinion about the
topic portrayed in the cartoon? (2 pts)
3. Do you agree or disagree with the
cartoonist’s opinion? Explain your answer.
(2 pts)
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Supreme Court Justice: Using the following website, choose a current United States Supreme
Court Justice and answer the following questions. http://www.supremecourt.gov (10 pts)
1. What is the name of the Justice?
2. What is the date and place of his/her birth?
3. What colleges/universities did the justice attend, and what degrees were earned?
4. Which president nominated the justice, and when did he/she take a seat on the Court?
5. Is the justice considered to be a liberal, moderate, or conservative justice.
Using your textbook and lecture notes answer the following questions. (60 pts)
LO 14.1:
 Define justice.
 Explain the development of law codes in human history.
 Explain the significance of the Corpus Juris Civilis.
 Explain why England’s common law influenced the United States.
1.
2.
3.
4.
What is the revelation of God’s law through the Scriptures? (1 pt)
Define Corpus Juris Civilis and precedents. (2 pts)
Why was adopting English common law advantageous for the colonies? (2 pts)
Compare the difference between common law and natural law. (2 pts)
LO 14.2
 Explain judicial federalism.
 Identify the three levels of the federal judiciary and describe the jurisdiction of
each.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Explain original and appellate jurisdiction. (2 pts)
Identify the three levels of federal judiciary and describe the jurisdiction of each. (6 pts.)
Explain writ of certiorari. (2 pts) (p.295) Latin “to be made more certain”;
List and explain the three kinds of opinions that a Supreme Court justice may write about
a decided case. (6 pts.)
9. What is indicated when a chief justice writes the majority opinion? (1 pt)
10. Explain why only a few cases reach the Supreme Court. (2 pts)
LO 14.3:
 Explain the constitutional procedure for making judicial appointments.
 Describe the factors that influence Senate confirmation of a judicial appointment.
11. List the five basic ways state judges are chosen. (5 pts)(p. 298)
12. Explain the entire process of how nominees to the federal district courts are selected and
confirmed. (3 pts)
13. Explain senatorial courtesy. (1 pt)
14. List the Constitutional qualifications for being a Supreme Court justice and explain how
someone becomes a justice on the highest court in America. (3 pts)
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15. Do you believe the process of selecting federal judges has become too politicized?
Explain your answer. (2 pts)
16. Do you believe it is right or wrong to ask a Supreme Court nominee to reveal how they
would decide a case, if it were to come before the Supreme Court? Explain your answer.
(2 pts.)
LO 14.4:
 Define judicial review and describe the extent of judicial review in the modern legal
system.
 Differentiate between judicial restraint and judicial activism.
17. Explain judicial review and the court case behind the term. (2 pts)
18. Compare and contrast the philosophies of judicial restraint and judicial activism. (4 pts)
19. How is the third branch of the government, the Supreme Court, subject to the will of the
president and Congress? How are the courts independent? (3 pts)
20. The judiciary has not been representative of many groups in American society. In your opinion,
should the unrepresentative nature of the federal judiciary be cause for concern? In what ways
would decisions change if the courts were more representative? What criteria should be used in
the nominating process? (3 pts)
21. What do you believe is the proper role of a U. S. Supreme Court justice? How should
justices apply their personal preferences, partisanship, and political ideology to their
work, if at all? It is reasonable to expect justices to put aside their personalities and
human qualities when approaching the Constitution of the United States? (6 pts)
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