1. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
The Judicial Branch
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

2. “The Role of the Federal Courts”
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

3. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Laws and Courts
Judicial Branch Components
The Supreme Court and more than 100 other federal courts.
Disputes involving laws are resolved in the legal system
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

4. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
What Courts Do
The Parties in a Conflict:
Plaintiff: Individual or group bringing a complaint against another party.
Defendant: The party who answers the complaint and defends against it.
Prosecution: A government body, brings a criminal charge against a defendant accused of breaking one of its laws.
Defense: The legal representation for the defendant
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

5. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
What Courts Do (cont.)
Members of the Court
Judge
Jury
Interpreting the Law
Precedent
Guideline for how all similar cases should be decided in the future.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

6. State Courts and Federal Courts
Jurisdiction
Original Jurisdiction
The authority to hear a case first
Appeal
Asking a higher court to review the decision and determine if justice was done.
Appellate Jurisdiction
The authority to hear an appeal
Federal Cases
Cases involving Federal laws & appeals from State Cases.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

7. “The Organization of the Federal Courts”
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

8. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
The District Courts
The “workhorse” of the Federal Court System
94 District Courts
300,00 cases per year
80 percent of Federal cases
Between 1 and 28 judges may serve a District Court
Trials have witnesses and juries
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

9. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
The Courts of Appeals
Court of Appeals
Handles appeals from the Federal Districts
Often called Circuit Courts
Twelve (12) regular Circuit Courts,
A thirteenth (13th) Court serves special federal courts and agencies of the Executive Branch.
Trials
Three Judges who affirm or reverse the lower court’s decision.
No jury, no witnesses
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

10. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
The Supreme Court
Highest Court in the Federal system
Purpose: to serve as the final court of appeals for both the state and federal court systems.
Other Special Federal Courts
Court of Claims
Court of Customs
Court of Patent Appeals
Tax Court
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

11. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Federal Court Judges
Appointment
Federal judges appointed by President and approved by the Senate
Judges serve life terms; can only be removed by impeachment or resignation.
Nine (9) judges are appointed to The Supreme Court
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

12. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
“The Supreme Court”
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

13. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Objective: To Examine Importance of Judicial Review.
(review the players)
(left) Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, John Marshall
(below) incoming president, Thomas Jefferson
(above) outgoing president John Adams
(right) Secretary of State, James Madison
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

14. One of the first acts of the new administration
Repeal Judiciary Act of 1789, which created a number of new judgeships. (a president’s legacy)
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

15. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
President Adams attempted to fill vacancies prior to the end of his term
Many commissions were not delivered.
One of the appointees,
William Marbury, sued
Secretary of State James Madison
to force him to deliver his commission
as a Justice of the Peace.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

16. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
John Marshall, Chief Justice
If the Court awarded Marbury writ of mandamus (order to force Madison to deliver commission)
Jefferson administration would ignore it.
Result: Significantly weaken authority of the courts.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

17. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
On the other hand,
if Court denied the writ,
it would appear the Justices acted out of fear.
Either decision demonstrated a denial
of the basic principle of
the Supremacy of the Law.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

18. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Justice Marshall's decision -
Marbury V Madison
a judicial tour de force.
Marshall declared:
Madison should have delivered commission to Marbury
The Judiciary Act of 1789, giving Supreme Court power to issue writs of mandamus, exceeded authority given the Court under Article III of the Constitution
Therefore; everything is null and void.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

19. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Critical importance of Marbury V Madison
Re-establishes powers of Supreme Court.
First: Authority to declare acts of Congress, and by implication, acts of the President, unconstitutional, if they exceed the powers granted by the Constitution.
Second: More importantly, The Supreme Court became the arbiter (interpreter/decision maker) of The Constitution.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

20. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
Final Results:
Judicial Review established.
The Supreme Court (Judicial Branch) now equal partner among the branches of government.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

21. Judicial Review - Summary Supreme Court Case: Marbury V Madison (1803)
The Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice John Marshall, declared the Judiciary Act of 1789 to be unconstitutional.
THEREFORE; Judiciary Act declared invalid.
Marbury v. Madison - Established Judicial Review (the power of federal courts to decide whether an act of Congress is constitutional or unconstitutional.)
Judicial Review established one of the most important powers of The Supreme Court.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

22. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
The Justices
Qualifications
None listed in the Constitution
The President selects justices from the most respected and qualified judges, lawyers, and legal scholars in the country.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

23. The Work of the Supreme Court
Selecting Cases
More than 8,000 requests are made per year, only about 100 cases are heard each year
Hearing Arguments
Attorneys submit briefs, and make oral arguments before the court
Making a Decision
The Justices vote and usually submit an opinion or written statement explaining the reasons for the decision.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

24. Appealing A Case to the Supreme Court
Back row (left to right): Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer, Samuel A. Alito, and Elena Kagan.
Front row (left to right): Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John Roberts, Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsberg.
Step 1: Case filed and ruled upon in a federal court
Step 2:
Case is appealed to a federal court of appeal
Step 3:
Case is appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court either:
Allows the lower court ruling to stand, or
Sends the case back to the lower court to reconsider it, or
Agrees to hear the case.

25. Influences on Judicial Decision Making
Considerations:
Laws
The Constitution
Precedents
Duties
Be fair and impartial
Respect precedent
Try to determine the intent of the Framers
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

26. Civics: Government and Economics in Action
A Changing Court
Judicial Activism
An effort by judges to take an active role in policymaking by overturning laws relatively often.
Judicial Restraint
An effort by judges to avoid overturning laws and to leave policymaking up to the other two branches of the government.
Civics: Government and Economics in Action

27. The Court and Other Branches of Government
The President’s Power
Appointment of judges
The Power of Congress
Confirmation of judges
Citizen Participation
Civics: Government and Economics in Action