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Supreme Court Cases: Federal Courts And The Federal Court System

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U.S. District courts are the lowest federal courts. Any federal cases are argued in these courts. They follow Supreme Court decisions. So there is room for misunderstanding. It’s not common for losing parties to appeal.

U.S. courts of appeals are the ones that go from district to federal. This court bases their decision on the lower court’s records. There are 13 appeal courts. One of them has jurisdiction over patents and international trade. There are 4-6 judges in each court, but it’s rare for all of them to be there. Each circuit in monitored by a Supreme Court Justice. The Supreme court reviews less than 1 percent of the cases heard by federal appeals courts (389).

Special U.S. courts include Claims Courts. Cases where the U.S. Government …show more content…
Distinguish between the federal and state court systems, indicating the conditions under which a case originating in a state court can be appealed to the federal courts; and differentiate further between trial and appellate courts.
Each state makes the structure of its court and how judges are picked. Unless there is a federal issue then the case never reaches federal court. Unless a constitutional right was violated, or if the court has over stepped its boundary then it can’t be appealed.

5. Explain the process of appointments of judges and justices to federal courts, and detail the factors that can influence this process.
Its controlled by the president who nominates someone. These judges and justices bring their political views into the courtroom. If you think like the president then you will probably be picked. The lower courts are sometimes chosen by a U.S. Senator or the president.

6. Discuss the role of partisan politics in the appointment of federal judges and justices, particularly at the Supreme Court level, and discuss the impact that appointments can have on long-term judicial policy.
Appointing judges and justices is strictly political. Appointing a justice on the U.S. Supreme court could sway the way the Court thinks or break the tie in a history changing …show more content…
Describe the constraints on judicial decision-making and the role of legal precedents on judicial interpretation of the law.
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9. Discuss the proper role of the judicial branch in a working democracy, including originalism theory and the living constitution theory.
The originalism theory is a method of interpreting the Constitution that emphasizes the meaning of its words at the time they were written. This is hard because it was written so long ago. This type of thinking should be considered, but I think the judges should an originalist. Living constitution theory is a method of interpreting the Constitution that emphasizes the principles it embodies and their application to changing circumstances and needs. This should have a bigger role because our society changes a lot every decade.

9. Distinguish between the philosophies of judicial activism and restraint, and provide a critique of each doctrine, discussing their underlying assumptions relating to the proper role of the Court in the American political system.

Judicial restraint is the doctrine that judiciary should follow closely the wording of the law, be highly respectful of precedent, and defer to the judgement of legislatures. This refers to how judges should keep their views and apply the law and not determine

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