Judicial Branch
• The president appoints Supreme Court justices, with___________________. The president's decision
may be influenced by the Justice Department, American Bar Association, interest groups, and other
Supreme Court justices.
• The court has final authority on cases involving the constitution, acts of Congress,
and___________________.
• Eight associate justices and one _______________________make up the supreme court.
1789
1801
Qualifications
Background of the Supreme Court
--The Judiciary Act of 1789 established a 3-level structure of federal court system
Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
District Courts
--First Chief Justice __________________________________________
--John Marshall was appointed Chief Justice (1801-1835)
--Marbury v. Madison established ____________________________________
--Marshall made the Supreme Court a powerful force in government
The court could now influence Congress and the President
The Supreme Court
--There are no Constitutional requirements or qualifications
--No professional requirements
Size
--The Constitution does not set a size for the Supreme Court
--The number is set by _____________________________________________
--The Judiciary Act set the number at ____________________
--Today we have ______________________ Supreme Court Justices
--Justices can be ______________________ for high crimes and misdemeanors
Terms
--Term begins on the first Monday in ________________________________
--Justices hear cases throughout the year until summer recess (last week in June
--Justices serve on the bench ____________________________________
Appointments
--Justices and the Chief Justices are appointed by the _____________________
and approved by the __________________________________________
--because they serve long terms they can influence national policy for years after the
president leaves
The Supreme Court at Work
Purpose of the Court --The Supreme Court is an appeals court reviewing cases that have been tried and
appealed in lower courts
--They have ___________________________________________ in
 Diplomatic representatives
 Disputes between states
 Disputes between states and the federal gov’t
How does a case
Get through the
Courts
1. ______________________________________-arguments by both sides
2. _______________________________________-approximately 30min.
justices may interrupt and ask questions
3. _____________________________________-justices meet in private
Conference twice a week to discuss cases
4. ________________________________________-preparing opinions
 ___________________________________-views of the majority
 ______________________________-agree with the outcome, but
For different reasons
 _______________________________-disagrees with the majority
**They rarely reverse other decisions because of _______________________________-upholding precedents
5. Decisions is announced
The Lower Courts of the Federal System
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
Role of the Courts
A. Resolving disputes- only people who suffer injury can ___________
B. Setting precedents- the courts rule on specific cases, but their decisions
___________________________
C. Interpreting the law- strict v. loose
1. strict constructionist- ______________________
2. loose constructionist- ______________________
Lower Court Organization
A. ________________ is the given the power to set up a system of federal courts under the
_____________________
B. District Courts
1. _______________ courts of the federal system
2. Handle disputes based on facts
C. Courts of Appeals
1. Handles appeals from _____________
2. There are _____ US. Court of Appeals each handle an area called a ___________
3. They do not review the facts, only issues of _____
4. Decisions are made based on _________ information; they do not hold separate trials
Federal judges
A. Federal judges serve for _______
B. Federal judges are appointed by __________ and approved by _________
C. Most appointments are made to district courts because __________
The _______________________System
A. Courts settle __________ disputes between private parties, a private party and the government, or
the United States and a state or local government.
B. Each side presents its ________________. The court applies the law and decides in favor of one
or the other.
Prosecuting the accused
A. Courts also hold __________________trials for people accused of crimes.
Witnesses present evidence and a jury or a judge delivers a verdict of __________________________
Rights of the _________________________
A. All accused people have the right to a public trial and a lawyer. If they cannot afford a lawyer, the
court will appoint and pay for one. (_______________________________, 1963)
B. Accused people are considered _________________________until proven guilty. They may ask
for a review of their case by a higher court if they think the court has made a mistake. This review
is called an____________.
The American Legal System
A. The goal of the legal system is ____________________under the law.
B. This goal is difficult to achieve.
C. Why is the goal of equal justice under the law difficult to achieve?
U.S. District Courts
A. ______________________are the federal courts where trials are held and lawsuits are begun.
X.
XI.
XII.
XIII.
B. All states have at least one.
C. For all federal cases, district courts have____________________, the authority to hear the case
for the first time.
D. District courts hear both civil and criminal cases.
E. They are the only federal courts that involve witnesses and_____________.
U.S. Courts of Appeals
A. People who lose in a district court often appeal to the next highest level—a U.S. court of appeals.
B. __________________review decisions made in lower district courts. This is
________________________________—the authority to hear a case appealed from a lower
court.
The US Circuit Court of Appeals
A. Each of the 12 U.S. courts of appeals covers a particular geographic area called
a___________________. A thirteenth appeals court, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit,
has nationwide jurisdiction.
B. Appeals courts do not hold trials. Instead, a panel of judges reviews the case records and listens to
_________________from lawyers on both sides.
C. The judges may decide in one of three ways: uphold (AGREE) the original decision, reverse
(disagree) the decision, or _____________________the case—send it back to the lower court to
be tried again.
The Supreme Court Justices
A. The main job of the nation's top court is to decide whether laws are allowable under
the_________________________.
B. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction only in cases involving foreign diplomats or a state.
All other cases come to the Court on appeal.
C. The Court chooses the cases it hears through the ___________________- an order by a higher
court directing a lower court, ___________________, or public authority to send the record in a
given case for review.
D. The Court chooses the cases it hears. In cases the Court refuses to hear, the decision of the lower
court____________________.
Limits on the Courts' Power
A. The Court depends on the executive branch and state and local officials to _________________its
decisions. Usually they do.
B. Congress can get around a Court ruling by passing a new law, changing a law ruled
unconstitutional, or __________________the Constitution.
C. The president's power to appoint justices and Congress's power to approve
________________________ and to impeach and remove justices serve to check the power of the
Court.
D. The Court cannot decide that a law is _______________________unless the law has been
challenged in a lower court and the case comes to it on appeal. The Court accepts only cases that
involve a ___________question. It usually stays out of political questions. It never considers guilt
or innocence.