Unit V: Institutions The Federal Courts

Introduction to Federal Courts Categories of law Statutory law Laws created by legislation; statutes Common law Accumulation of court precedents Criminal law Government prosecuting law breakers Civil law Dealing with rights of citizens; usually involves suits brought between parties

Introduction to Federal Courts Judicial Reach (Jurisdiction) Passive power Courts must wait for cases to come before them Standing Plaintiffs must show personal stake/injury Litigants Plaintiff (bring charges) and defendant. Stare decisis Legal doctrine meaning The decision stands Precedents (force of law) guide bureaucracy & future courts Original jurisdiction First time case is heard; all legal rights pertaining to full trial Appellate jurisdiction Appeals level; panel of judges review ; no trial

Participants in the Judicial System (cont.) Class action suits Lawsuits in which a small number of people sue on behalf of all people in similar circumstances.

Participants in the Judicial System (cont.) Amicus curiae briefs Legal briefs submitted by a friend of the court for the purpose of influencing a court s decision.

The Nature of the Judicial System Participants in the Judicial System (cont.) Attorneys About a million attorneys are practicing in the United States today. Access to lawyers has become more equal, but that does not mean that quality of representation is equal.

Structure of the Courts What does the Constitution say in Article III? Provides for Supreme Court Specifies jurisdiction Provides details regarding juries/treason No mention of court structure

Structure of the Courts In Article I, sec. 8 (delegated powers) Congress shall have the power to constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court. (Structure is created by Judiciary Act of 1789)

see Washington Government PDF

15.2 How cases reach the Supreme Court

Sources of full opinions in the Supreme Court, 2010-2011 15.3

Selection Process Federal Judges Lifetime tenure (The Federalist No. 78) Compensation ($267,000 for Chief Justice/ $ 255, 300 for the others) Phases of confirmation

Backgrounds of Federal Justices All justices have been lawyers. All but 6 (Marshall, O Connor, Thomas, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan) have been white males. Most age 50s and 60s when they took office, from uppermiddle or upper class, and Protestants.

1. Senatorial courtesy Phases of Confirmation 2. Official Nomination 3. Senate Judiciary Committee hearings ( vetting process ) 4. Full Senate debate & vote

Factors Affecting Confirmation President s current political capital Make-up of the Senate Time remaining in a President s term Demographics of candidate Overall competence Paper Trail which can reflect ideology Stance on stare decisis

The Politics of Judicial Selection Through 2017, there have been 154 nominations to the Supreme Court, and 113 people have served on the Court. Presidents have failed 20% of the time to appoint the nominees of their choice to the Court.

The Politics of Judicial Selection Nominations are likely to run into trouble if the president( s) party is in the Senate minority makes a nomination at the end of their terms views are more distant from the norm in the Senate nominee faces competence or ethics questions.

U.S. Supreme Court 15.4 Justices Kagan, Alito, Sotomayor, Gorsuch Ginsburg, Kennedy, Thomas, Roberts, and Breyer

Supreme Court justices 15.4 Antonin Scalia died in 2016 Neil Gorsuch joined the court in 2017.

October June: Court is in Session Court Schedule Monday Thursday: Individual Research Amicus Curiae Briefs Friday: Debate in chambers ( a closed debate)

The Highest Court: U.S. Supreme Court Accepting cases Constitutional Issues Political hot potatoes? Requests for Supreme Court review (about 8,000 cases accept less than 100). Writ of Certiorari request to get the case from a lower court. The S.C. wants to review the case and make it certain. Rule of Four

The Courts as Policymakers Making Decisions Briefs submitted by both sides and amicus curiae briefs filed. Oral argument 1 hour hearing. Conference Discuss case, vote, and assign opinion writing. Opinions drafted and circulated for comments. Decision announced.

15.5 Obtaining space on the Supreme Court s docket

The Courts as Policymakers Making Decisions (cont.) Opinion Statement of legal reasoning behind a decision. Majority opinion 5 justices. Dissenting opinions Justices opposed to majority decision. Concurring opinions Support a majority decision but stress a different constitutional or legal basis for the judgment.

Delivering Opinions Requires simple majority If it s a tie it dies Writing of the Opinion" (assigned by Chief) Majority Concurring Dissenting On the record to protest the majority Over 200 times a dissenting opinion has been used to help overturn a previous opinion

The Courts as Policymakers Making Decisions (cont.) Stare Decisis Phrase meaning let the decision stand. Most cases in appellate courts are settled on stare decisis. Precedent How similar cases have been decided in the past. Lower courts are expected to follow the precedents of higher courts in their decision making.

Judicial Implementation The opinion gets remanded to lower courts No Teeth enforcement is slow Supreme Court depends on executive and legislative branches to carry out their rulings. Example? Brown v. Board of Education, 1954 All deliberate speed

Selection Process 1. Federal Attorneys (4 yr terms) a.) Attorney General Jeff Sessions b.) Solicitor General c.) US attorneys

Understanding the Courts The Courts and Democracy Courts are not very democratic because judges are not elected and are difficult to remove. The courts often reflect popular majorities and preferences. Groups are likely to use the courts when other methods fail, which promotes pluralism.

Politics of Judicial Rulings Judicial Activism Judicial Restraint The Courts have a responsibility to The Courts have a responsibility to (Brennan reading) (What the Founders Intended) Remember: Activism is in the eye of the loser

Who can challenge a law in an American court? A. Any citizen can challenge any law. B. Any tax-paying citizen can challenge any law. C. Only a person who has a serious interest in a case can challenge a law. D. Only a lawyer can challenge a law.

Which of the following was actually specified in the U.S. Constitution? A. The Constitutional Courts B. The Court of Military Appeals C. The Tax Court D. The U.S. Supreme Court

A. competence B. income C. partisanship D. ideology Which of the following is NOT one of the different criteria that have been used for selecting judges and justices to the federal courts.

All of the following are true of the backgrounds of federal judges EXCEPT they typically A. have been white males. B. have been from the appointing president s region of the country. C. share the appointing president s political party affiliation. D. share the appointing president s ideology.

Judicial review was established by John Marshall and his associates in. A. Marbury v. Madison (1803) B. Schechter Poultry Corporation v. U.S. (1935) C. U.S. v. Nixon (1974) D. Bush v. Gore (2000)

A judicial philosophy in which judges play minimal policymaking roles, leaving that duty strictly to the legislatures. A. political questions B. statutory construction C. judicial activism D. judicial restraint