Judiciary Branch Vocab

Amicus curiae brief

brief filed by an individual or organization to present arguments in addition to those presented by the immediate parties to a case.

appellate jurisdiction

Authority of court to review a decision of a lower court or administrative agency.

attorney general

Head of the Justice Department and the chief law enforcement officer of the United States

class action suit

Lawsuit brought by an individual or group of people on behalf of all those similarly situated.

concurring opinion

majority rules but in favor for different reasons in the supreme court

dissenting opinion

A statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion

judicial activism

An approach to decision making in which judges sometimes make bold policy decisions, even charting new constitutional ground.

judicial restraint

Philosophy proposing that judges should interpret the constitution to reflect what the framers intended and what its words literally say

litmus test

The term is used in politics to mean a test of ideological purity, a way of finding out whether a person is a dyed-in-the-wool liberal or conservative or what his or her views are on a controversial question

majority opinion

a statement that presents the views of the majority of supreme court justices regarding a case

original jurisdiction

The jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial. These are the courts that determine the facts about a case.

per curiam opinion

phrase used to distinguish an opinion of the whole court from an opinion written by any one judge

precedent

A decision in a previous court case that is used as the basis for a decision in a similar case.

rule of four

Requirement that a case can only be heard by the Supreme Court if four justices vote to hear the case

senatorial courtesy

Presidential custom of submitting the names of prospective appointees for approval to senators from the states in which the appointees are to work.

solicitor general

Senior Justice Department attorney. Decides what cases the government will appeal to the Supreme Court, files amicus briefs with the Supreme Court in cases the government is interested in, and represents the United States before the Supreme Court.

stare decisis

Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from previous cases

strict constructionist

a person who interprets the Constitution in a way that allows the federal government to take only those actions the Constitution specifically says it can take

US District Courts

Trial courts in the federal court system in which almost all federal case begin; courts of general jurisdiction

writ of certiorari

Order from the US Supreme Court ordering a lower court to provide the Supreme Court with a full record of all proceedings in the lower court.