Lecture 14-2
What Courts Do
Constitutional
Interpretation
Judicial review allows
judges to announce the authoritative meaning of the Constitution
Interpretations differ among
judges because of different political values they hold
Statutory
interpretation
Like passages in the
Constitution, words in statutes passed by Congress and state legislatures are
not always clear
Sometimes statutes do not
appear to address the issue at hand and courts have to engage in a search for
legislative intent
Fact Determination
Facts are often in dispute,
even when the meaning of the laws and the Constitution is clear
Trial courts are most
heavily engages in fact determination
Clarification of
the Boundaries of Political Authority
In certain situations courts
resolve a dispute over where the authority of one branch of government stops
and anothers begins or boundary between State and National Government
authority.
Legitimation
In most cases, judges uphold
the legality of actions of the other officers of the government
Some decisions will end a
public debate, but other decision such as the one in 1973 on abortion spark
further national debate