1. FEDERAL COURT
The Constitution (Article III) allows Congress to grant the federal courts jurisdiction over eight types of cases:
cases arising under the federal Constitution, federal law, or treaties (federal question jurisdiction);
cases affecting ambassadors and other ministers from foreign states;
admiralty and maritime cases (admiralty jurisdiction);
cases in which the United States itself is a party;
cases between two or more states;
cases between citizens of different states (diversity jurisdiction);
cases between citizens of the same state, who claim land under grants from different states; and
cases between a state or its citizens and a foreign state or its citizens (alienage jurisdiction).