Ch 18
The Basis for the Courts
 Article III established the supreme court, while the
same time allowing Congress to establish inferior
(lesser) courts.
 Additionally, its important to remember that we have
two different court systems in this country; Federal
and State courts.
Two Types of Federal Courts
 Congress has established two types of Federal Courts:
1) Constitutional Courts
2) Special Courts
Supreme Court
Constitutional
Courts
Special Courts
Inferior Courts
The Constitutional Courts
 This includes:
-Court of Appeals (12)
-District Courts (94)
-Court of International Trade
These are known as the Regular or Article III Courts
Special Courts
 Special Courts have been created to deal with powers
expressed in Article I. The range of cases is much more
narrow.
Special Courts include:
-Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
-Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
-Federal Claims Court
-Tax Court
-Courts of the District of Columbia
-Territorial Courts
Federal Court Jurisdiction
 Jurisdiction: authority to hear a case.
 Federal courts get to hear cases due to two criteria.
1) Subject matter
2) Parties involved
 If not in the jurisdiction of Federal Courts, its in the
jurisdiction of State Courts.
Types of Jurisdiction
 The type of jurisdiction depends on a few criteria:
1)Whether they share power to hear the case with State Courts or
not
2)Whether they are the first Court to hear the case
Exclusive Jurisdiction: case can only be heard in Federal Court
Concurrent Jurisdiction: case can be heard in either Federal or
State Court
Plaintiff-Person filing suit
Defendant-Person who the complaint is against
Original vs Appellate Jurisdiction
 Original Jurisdiction: Court where case is first heard
 Appellate Jurisdiction: A Court that hears a case on
appeal (after original jurisdiction)
Appointment of Judges
 Judges are appointed by the President with Senate
confirmation. Senatorial Courtesy is also generally
followed.
 While the Courts are supposed to be bipartisan,
selections may lean towards the party of power
(Especial with the Supreme Court nominees)
The Judicial System and Public
Policy
 Hearing and ruling on cases has the potential to
change public policy.
 This leads to the two different outlooks and
mentalities for Judges.
 Restraint vs Activism
Judicial Restraint
 Judicial Restraint: the belief that judges should always
try to decide cases on the basis of (1) original intent of
those who wrote the constitution and (2) precedent,
that is rulings in line with previous decisions
 This line of thinking believes judges should not be
changing or setting law through their decisions
Judicial Activism
 Judicial Activism is the belief that judges should act
more boldly; decisions can be interpreted to reflect
values and feelings of a changing society.
Terms and Pay
 Federal Judges are appointed for life, only being
removed through the impeachment process.
 Judges appointed to the Special Courts do not,
however get that luxury.
 Congress sets their pay, if they wish to retire at 70
(with at least 10 years of service) they will receive a full
pension.
Court Officers
 Magistrates are appointed to assist Judges.
 They issue warrants, hear evidence, and set bail.
 Other Officers
-Bankruptcy Judge
-District Attorneys
-Marshals
The Inferior Courts
 A majority (80%) of federal cases are heard in District
courts.
 There are 89 Districts in place. They have original
jurisdiction over federal cases.
 They can hear two types of cases:
-Criminal: meaning a federal law has been broken.
-Civil: a noncriminal dispute has occurred.
Court of Appeals
 If an appeal from District Court occurs it goes to the
Court of Appeals (12 in total)
 Appellate Judges tend to look at cases with a panel of
three judges, however “en banc” can occur, which
means all judges assigned to a circuit would attend
 Appeal Courts only have appellate jurisdiction. Their
verdicts are final, unless the Supreme Court chooses to
hear the case.
Supreme Court
 The power of the Supreme Court comes from Judicial
Review: the ability to rule on the constitutionality of public
policy.
 Judicial Review was born out of the case Marbury V
Madison (1803)
 Judicial Review occurs because:
1) The Constitution is supreme law of the land
2) All legislative acts or measures are secondary to it
3) Judges are sworn to enforce the provisions of the
constitution.
Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court
 This Court has both Original and Appellate
Jurisdiction.
 The two cases in which they must have original
jurisdiction:
-Those in which a State is party
-Those affecting ambassadors or other public consuls
 In other cases they can choose to take on original
jurisdiction.
How does a case reach the Court?
 The rule of four is used.
 “Writ of Certiorari”-meaning the court calls for the
record of a case from a lower court.
 Certificate- where a lower court requests that the high
court look at a case for a specific reason or question.
 The court convenes to hear arguments, read briefs, and
hold conference.
Opinions of the Court
 When a case is finally decided, a written opinion must be
produced. It is written by a justice from the majority side.
 Majority Opinion-The courts official standing on a case
 Precedents-example to be followed in similar cases
 Concurring Opinion-To add or emphasize a point not
written in the Majority Opinion
 Dissenting Opinion- Opinion of a Justice in the minority
side of case. Allows them to speak their mind and leaves
ideas in the event that the court reconsiders the matter on a
different case.