Granting Certiorari

Today’s Objective After today’s lesson, students will be able to... Explain the meaning of writ of certiorari Discuss the Supreme Court’s process for granting certiorari Essential Skill: Explicitly assess information and draw conclusions

The Court’s Primary Role To resolve conflicts in lower courts; interpret the constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States

How Cases Get to the Supreme Court 1) Original Jurisdiction 2) Certificate on a Rule 3) Writ of Certiorari

Writ of Certiorari Parties who are not satisfied with the decision of a lower court must petition the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their case. The primary means to petition the court for review is to ask it to grant a writ of certiorari. This is a request that the Supreme Court order a lower court to send up the record of the case for review

Number of Petitions In recent terms, there have been between 7,000 and 9,000 cases appealed to the Supreme Court each year. Out of approx. 8,000 petitions in the average year, about 80 are granted (1%).

Deciding on Certiorari Reasons to Decline Absurd Claims Frivolous Issues Clear Denies Lack of Percolation Cases of Bad Facts Pipeline Considerations Intractable Issue Reasons to Accept Circuit Conflict Importance One of a kind case Public interest Capital case Areas of interest to justices Legal errors in lower courts Involvement of federal government

Deciding to Decide Read the six petitions for certiorari Decide whether the Supreme Court would or would not grant certiorari (listen to the case) and explain your reasoning