Lecture 14-1

Cases: Raw Material for the Judiciary

• The judiciary operates only in the context of deciding cases

• Judges rely heavily on reason in justifying what they do

– The value of precedent

• Federalism mean that state courts and federal court operate within each state

• The constitution binds all American courts, state and federal

United States District Courts

• These are the courts of original jurisdiction for virtually all federal cases

• Matter of state law are decided by district court ONLY when diversity of jurisdiction comes into play

US Courts of appeals

• These are intermediate appellate courts in the federal courts system

• Appeals court accepts cases from the district courts and from many independent regulatory agencies

Special (Legislative) Courts

• Claims Court

• Court of International Trade

• Tax Court

• Court of Military Appeals

• Court of Veterans Appeals

Supreme Court

• Appellate Jurisdiction set by Congress and consists mainly of certiorari or discretionary jurisdiction

• Appeal or obligatory category of appellate jurisdiction has largely been abolished by Congress

• The Constitution gives the Court a very small original jurisdiction

Supreme Court

• The Court is headed by the chief justice of the United States

Federal Judicial Selection

• All federal judges are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate

• Most judges are in the president’s party and virtually all share the president’s ideology ( at least at that time)