Do Now: Grab today’s Agenda (9:3) and complete the questions in Part II. You will need the Internet to complete.

Independence and Review Judicial Independence Judicial Review

Judicial Independence Section “Article III Judges” Name the three types of Article III judges. Supreme Court Justice (?)

Judicial Independence Section “Article III Judges” Name the three types of Article III judges. Supreme Court Justice (Article III, Section 1) Appellate Judges (?)

Judicial Independence Section “Article III Judges” Name the three types of Article III judges. Supreme Court Justice (Article III, Section 1) Appellate Judges (Article III, Section 2, Clause 2) District Judges (?)

Judicial Independence Section “Article III Judges” Name the three types of Article III judges. Supreme Court Justice (Article III, Section 1) Appellate Judges (Article III, Section 2, Clause 2) District Judges (Article III, Section 2, Clause 3) How do Article III judges get their jobs? Nominated by the President Confirmed by the Senate For how long do Article III judge serve? For life

Judicial Independence Section “The Appointment Process” In which Article of the U.S. Constitution will you find the requirement for the appointment process? Article II, Section 2. Clause 2 “…he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint… Judges of the supreme Court…” The job of appointing and confirming the nominees begins with the ?

Judicial Independence Section “The Appointment Process” In which Article of the U.S. Constitution will you find the requirement for the appointment process? Article II, Section 2. Clause 2 “…he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint… Judges of the supreme Court…” The job of appointing and confirming the nominees begins with the Senate Judiciary Committee, whose members meet with and investigate the nominees to make sure they are good candidates for the position.

Judicial Independence What is judicial independence? The practice of protecting the courts from the influence of the other branches and from public opinion. What three factors are given for how this is guaranteed? List each factor and explain how each contributes to independence. Federal judges are appointed instead of being elected. This frees judges from having to run for election, raise money, and take a partisan stand on issues. Thus, once appointed, they don’t have to please their constituents to try to gain reelection, and can simply do their job. Federal judges serve a life term. The life term provides job security, and allows appointed judges to do what is right under the law, because they don’t have to fear that they will be fired if they make an unpopular decision. Federal judges can’t have their salary reduced. This security allows judges to decide each case strictly in terms of the legal issues in front of them, no matter how unpopular their decisions may be. Congress sets the salary of judges in the federal system. This salary can be raised but cannot be decreased once the judge has taken office. The salary of a federal judge is roughly equal to that of a member of Congress.

Judicial Independence Section “Checks and Balances” What are two ways the power of judges is checked? Impeachment Judicial Code of Conduct Application Look up the definition of the word INTEGRITY. The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. Why is INTEGRITY an important quality for a judge to possess?

Judicial Independence Alexander Hamilton, in Federalist No.79 warned it would be a bad idea to put the courts under the leadership of Congress. He felt this would jeopardize the independent nature of the courts. Use this reasoning to explain how the principles of SEPARATION OF POWERS helps to ensure an independent judiciary.

Judicial Independence Reviewing Judicial Independence Judicial independence is essential to a working judicial system. The court and judges are independent from public opinion because they are not elected. The courts and judges are independent from the other two branches: They can’t be removed in times of good behavior Their salary can’t be reduced by the president or Congress Because the courts and judges are independent, they are free to make decisions according to the law, even if those decisions might be unpopular. Federal judges are bound by the law, and by a strict code of ethics, which provides guidance for judges in maintaining their independence.

Judicial Review Election of 1800 The Election of 1800 put incumbent President John Adams, a Federalist,

Judicial Review Election of 1800 The Election of 1800 put incumbent President John Adams, a Federalist, against Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican.

Judicial Review Election of 1800 The Election of 1800 put incumbent President John Adams, a Federalist, against Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican. The Democratic-Republican not only won the White House, but they also won Congress. However, inauguration back then wasn’t until March 4 (compared to today’s January 20 th – 20 th Amendment)

Judicial Review “Midnight Judges” So in their attempt to retain control of at least one branch – judicial – Congress, which was still Federalist, created 100 new judicial positions. Judges need to first be nominated by the President. Since Adams was a Federalist, he nominated Federalist judges. Judges then needed to be approved by the Senate. Since the Senate was still Federalist, they approved Adams’ judges.

Judicial Review “ Midnight Judges” And all this had to be done before March 4! The act creating the judges passed February 13, 19 days before inauguration day. In those 19 days, President Adams quickly nominated and the Senate quickly confirmed those judges. Commissions were then sent out as soon as possible. These commissions officially assigned to the judges their positions. The last three commissions were signed on March 3.

Judicial Review “ Midnight Judges” As soon as Jefferson took the oath of office,

Judicial Review “ Midnight Judges” As soon as Jefferson took the oath of office, he instructed his Secretary of State James Madison to not release those last three commissions from going out.

Judicial Review “ Midnight Judges” As soon as Jefferson took the oath of office, he instructed his Secretary of State James Madison to not release those last three commissions from going out. One of those commissions belonged to William Marbury. So he sued.

Judicial Review Writ of Mandamus Article III Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution describes the federal judiciary as one Supreme Court and lower courts to be created by Congress. The Judiciary Act of 1789 established (among other things): The number of Supreme Court justices to six 13 judicial districts Office of Attorney General (which would later be the Department of Justice) Granted the Supreme Court the power to issue writs of mandamus

Judicial Review Writ of Mandamus A writ of mandamus is a judicial order to any government official to do or not do something specific, to which they were otherwise obliged under the law to do. So Marbury filed his case directly to the Supreme Court (since the Judiciary Act of 1789 gave this power directly to the Supreme Court) – limited jurisdiction – to issue a writ of mandamus against Madison to release his commission.

Judicial Review Chief Justice John Marshall On the surface, Marshall had two options: Grant Marbury the request and issue the writ Deny Marbury the request The problem with either of those options is that both make the Supreme Court look weak: Marshall knew that Jefferson would instruct Madison to ignore the decision, thus making the Court look weak. People would think that Marshall denied the writ because he feared Jefferson, still making the Court look weak. The Supreme Court at this point in American history was not very strong. However, at the very least, Marshall did not want to make the Court weaker. At most, he wanted to strengthen the Court.

Judicial Review Marbury v. Madison (1803) Marshall reviewed the Judiciary Act of 1789 that granted the Supreme Court the power to issue the writ of mandamus. In this, Marshall discovered a problem: Where in the Constitution does it say that Congress can change (increase or decrease) the power of the Supreme Court? Therefore, that portion of the Judiciary Act was declared unconstitutional. So even if Marshall wanted to grant the writ, he could not. This established judicial review, the power to declare actions of both the legislative and executive branch unconstitutional. This strengthened the power of the Court.

Conclusion Judicial independence is a core concept of the American judicial system. It allows the judicial system to function outside of politics and public opinion. Judicial review establishes the power of the federal courts to review any acts of government and determine its constitutionality.