Ardoin Chapter 7 Test: Judicial Activism and Restraint in Political Science

president

Who nominates judges to the federal courts and justices to the Supreme Court?

senate

The ______________________ confirms or rejects nominees to the federal courts.

name

The Supreme Court is referred to by the _______________________ of the chief justice who presided over it during a particular period.

article 3

Which article of the Constitution establishes the judicial branch?

the types of cases a court can hear

Define jurisdiction.

the courts authority to hear disputes as a trail court for the first time

What is original jurisdiction?

appellate

_________________________________ jurisdiction refers to a court's ability to review and/or revise cases already decided by a trial court.

congress can alter the courts ability to hear certain kinds of cases, congress can propose amendments that can reverse judicial decisions if ratified, and congress can impeach and remove federal judges

What are the 3 main ways Congress checks the judicial branch?

constitutionality

The main way the judiciary checks the other two branches is by reviewing the _________________________________ of acts of the president and Congress

the basic three-tiered structure of the federal court system

What did the Judiciary Act of 1789 establish?

1st is district, 2nd is court of appeals, 3rd is supreme court

What are the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd tiers of the federal court system?

9

How many Supreme Court justices are there today?

it was a failure with frequent changes in personnel, limited space for operations, no clerical support, and no systems of reporting decisions

What was the Supreme Court like in the beginning?

declined to give Washington advice on the legality of some of his actions

Which early precedent established the Supreme Court as an independent, nonpolitical branch
of government?

prohibits federal courts from hearing certain lawsuits against states

What does the 11th Amendment do?

reduce the size of the supreme court from 6 to 5, eliminated supreme court justices circuit court duties, and created 16 federal court judgeships

What did the Judiciary Act of 1801 do?

chief justice of the supreme court from 1801-1835 and he brought respect and prestige to the court by establishing it's role and power

Who was John Marshall?

states

The Marshall Court established the authority of the Supreme Court over the judiciaries of the
various ___________________________.

McCulloch v. Maryland

With which court case did the Marshall Court establish the supremacy of the federal
government over state governments through a broad interpretation of the necessary and proper
clause?

judicial review

What ability was established by the Marshall Court with the Marbury v. Madison ruling?

dual; 3

The U.S. judicial system can best be described as a ________________________ system
consisting of the federal court system and the state court systems of the 50 states with both
systems having _________ tiers.

trial courts

What are federal district courts?

district

_______________________________courts are where the bulk of the judicial work takes
place in the federal system.

involve the federal government as a party, present a federal question based on a claim under the constitution, and involve civil suits in which citizens are from different states and the amount of money is over 75,000

Federal district courts have original jurisdiction over cases that fall into what 3 categories?

losing

The ________________________________ party in a case heard in a federal district court
can appeal the decision to a court of appeals.

appellate

Rather than original jurisdiction, courts of appeals have ______________________________
jurisdiction.

district

Most cases don't go further than the _________________________ court level-they're
typically solved by pleas (criminal cases) or settlements (civil cases).

correct

Courts of appeals simply try to _____________________________ errors of law and
procedure that have occurred in lower courts or administrative agencies.

in the judicial system deciding a case based on precedent

What does stare decisis refer to?

blue

If a senator does not agree with a federal judge nomination for a court in his or her state, they
can voice their opposition on the ________________________ slip sent to them by the Senate
Judiciary Committee.

experience, ideology, pursuit of political support, religion, and demographic

What are the 5 main criteria that are important for a nominee to the Supreme Court?

federal

Service on a lower ________________________________ court has become almost a
requirement for nomination to the Supreme Court.

public

A president may select a Supreme Court nominee to gain __________________________
approval.

Senate Judiciary Committee

Which Senate committee receives federal judge nominations from the president?

politically powerful organization that represents the interests of the legal profession; rates each nominee

What is the American Bar Association (ABA)?

they know that these appointments increasingly pave the way for future nominees to the Supreme Court

Why are many interest groups involving themselves in district court and court of appeals
nominations?

begins on the first Monday in October and goes through the Sunday before the first Monday in October of the following year

When is the Supreme Court's term?

8,000; 80 accepted

Around how many cases are filed at the Supreme Court each term? Of these, how many are
typically accepted?

A request for the Supreme Court to order up the records of the lower courts for purposes of review

What is a writ of certiorari ?

case

The reasons the Supreme Court should accept a ___________________ for review are set out in the petitioner's writ of
certiorari
.

discuss

Justices review their assigned fraction of petitions from the
cert pool, and those cases deemed noteworthy make it onto the "___________________________ list."

when at least four justices vote to hear a case

What does the Rule of Four refer to?

research material, reading and summarizing cases, and helping justices write opinions; they take the first glance at petitions that come to the court

What do clerks do?

federal government is the party asking for review, case involves conflict among the courts of appeals, case presents a civil rights or civil liberties question, case involves the ideological preferences of the justices, case has significant social/political interest

What circumstances increased the odds of a case being accepted?

handles nearly all appeals on behalf of the U.S. government to the Supreme Court

What is the Solicitor General's main role?

friend of the court

What does amicus curiae refer to?

sponsorship

____________________________________ implies that an interest group has helped to devise the legal strategy, pay the costs of litigation, and guide the case through the court system.

briefs

Once the Supreme Court accepts a case for review, lawyers on both sides of the case prepare their ____________________________ in which they will cite prior case law and make
arguments regarding why the Court should rule in favor of their client.

oral arguments take place

What happens after the Supreme Court accepts a case and each side has submitted briefs and amicus briefs?

conference

Justices meet in closed ____________________________________ twice a week when the Court is hearing oral arguments, and this is where justices try to change the minds of others.

an opinion

Once the Supreme Court reaches a decision in conference, what must it write?

precedent

The legal reasoning behind the Supreme Court's decision regarding a case becomes a _______________________________ for deciding future cases.

written to represent the stance of 3 or 4 justices when a majority opinion cannot be reached

. What is a plurality opinion?

issued by a minority of judges on a court who agree with the outcome of a case but wish to express different legal reasoning

What is a concurring opinion?

issued by a minority of judges on a court who disagree with the outcome of a case and wish to explain their legal reasoning

What is a dissenting opinion?

that the Constitution should be read as the Framers intended

What do originalists advocate for?

courts should allow the decisions of other branches to stand even if they offend a judge's own principles

What does judicial restraint refer to?

posits judges should use their power broadly to further justice

What is judicial activism?

injustices

Proponents of judicial activism argue that it is appropriate for courts to correct _________________________________ committed by other branches of government.

authority

The Supreme Court must be wary not to make decisions that will damage its ________________________________ and lessen its prestige in the eyes of the public.

recent poles have shown the public has far more trust in the Court than the other two branches of government

How does trust in the Supreme Court compare to the other 2 branches of government?

how and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies affecting more than the immediate parties to the lawsuit

Define judicial implementation.