National Government Module 6

Jurisdiction

the right of a court to consider a particular case

Federal jurisdiction

encompasses cases involving the U.S. Constitution or other federal laws and cases in which the U.S. government is a party

Diversity jurisdiction

cases involving individuals from two different states could be tried in federal court if the stakes of the case were high enough

Plaintiff

the person or company who initiates the lawsuit

Defendant

the person or entity being sued

Ultimately every case in the United States is subject to the requirement that it comply with the U.S. Constitution.

True

Cases falling within federal diversity jurisdiction must first be heard in a state court before moving to a federal court.

False, a case that meets the requirements for diversity jurisdiction can start in either state or federal court.

Appellate jurisdiction

involves cases that are appealed to the Supreme Court from a lower federal court or from a state supreme court

Ex Parte McCardle

the Supreme Court ruled that Congress can remove the jurisdiction of the court to hear particular categories of cases

Original jurisdiction

cases heard initially by the Supreme Court, rather than first being heard by a lower court

A case in which the United States is sued by an interest group over environmental laws is an example of what kind of jurisdiction?

Appellate jurisdiction

A case in which the Ambassador from Costa Rica disputes a New York state divorce law is an example what kind of jurisdiction?

Original jurisdiction

A case in which Arizona sues California over their shared border along the Colorado river is an example of what kind of jurisdiction?

Original jurisdiction

A case in which federal immigration laws are challenged in an example of what kind of jurisdiction?

Appellate jurisdiction

Federal district courts

Courts where most cases in the federal system are heard initially

How many judges normally hear a case in the federal district courts?

1

Federal circuit courts

intermediate appellate courts in the federal system

A federal circuit court is the last place that almost all federal cases are heard.

True

Court Packing Plan

appoint new justices and replacement justices for those that did not retire soon enough

discretionary docket

it decides which cases it will hear

Rule of Four

rule made by the court itself that says if any four of the nine justices agree to hear a case than it is placed on the docket

How many justices need to vote to hear a case in order for it to appear on the Supreme Court's docket?

4

Solicitor general

member of the executive branch who is tasked with representing the interests of the federal government before the court

Writ of certiorari

legal order to the lower court to send up the record of the case for the Supreme Court to consider

amicus curiae briefs

designed to provide the court with information outside of the information provided by the parties

Which of the following is NOT a factor that increases the likelihood that a case will be heard on the merits by the Supreme Court?

A case involving multiple state governments.

oral arguments

The verbal arguments presented in person by attorneys to an appellate court. Each attorney presents reasons to the court why the court should rule in her or his client's favor.

conference

justices meet to see how they will vote in a certain case

Order from first through last in describing the process by which the Supreme Court decides a case

1. Issue writ of certiorari

2. Hear oral arguments

3. Meet in conference to discuss merits of case

4. Issue majority opinion

dissenting opinion

a separate opinion written by a justice and typically joined by other justices that announces their reasons for disagreeing with the outcome reached by the majority

concurring opinion

agrees with the outcome reached by the majority but not the reasons for reaching the conclusion

bork

defeat nominee by using interest groups to turn public opinion, sometimes in a way that might be considered slanderous

Which of the following factors is now the most important in a president's decision about who to nominate to the Supreme Court?

Ideology of nominee

Which of the following confirmation processes would you expect to be MOST contentious?

Supreme Court

policy preferences model

The way certain justices vote based on ideology (liberal vs conservative)

Which of the following is NOT a policy position likely to be taken by a CONSERVATIVE judge?

Pro-environmental protection

strategic model

builds on the policy preferences model in that it assumes the primary goal for most judges most of the time is to use their policy preferences to guide their decisions

Courts from least to most likely to utilize strategic decision making

1. Supreme Court

2. District Courts

3. Circuit Courts

legal model

the method that most people think of when they contemplate how a judge decides a case

Precedent

the notion that decisions in past cases that are similar to the current case should control the decision in the current case

Plain meaning

refers to the idea that laws need to be read carefully to understand their meaning

Lawmaker intent

refers to the idea that to understand what a law means we should ask what the people who wrote it understood it to mean when they wrote it

At which level of the federal judiciary is the application of precedent most likely to control judicial decision making?

District Court