Unit 6: Judicial Branch 2024

Appellate jurisdiction

authority of a court to hear an appeal from a lower court.

Civil law

concerns noncriminal disputes between private parties.

Class action lawsuit

lawsuit brought on behalf of a class of people against a defendant, e.g., lawsuits brought by those who have suffered from smoking against tobacco companies.

Concurring opinion

written by a Supreme Court Justice who voted with the majority, but for different reasons.

Dissenting opinion

written by a Supreme Court Justice (or Justices) who express a minority viewpoint in a case.

Injunction

court order that forbids a party from performing a certain action.

Judicial activism

philosophy that the courts should take an active role in solving problems.

Judicial restraint

philosophy that the courts should defer to elected lawmakers in setting policy, and should instead focus on interpreting law rather than making law.

Judicial review

power of the courts to review the constitutionality of laws or government actions.

Majority opinion

written to express the majority viewpoint in a Supreme Court case.

Original jurisdiction

authority of a court to first hear a case.

Quorum

minimum number of members needed for the House or Senate to meet.

Remand

the Supreme Court's sending of a case back to the original court in which it was heard.

Rule of four

the Supreme Court will hear a case if four Justices agree to do so.

Senatorial courtesy

tradition in which the President consults with the senators within a state in which an appointment is to be made.

Stare decisis

Latin for "let the decision stand." Supreme Court policy of following precedent in deciding cases.

Writ of certiorari

issued by the Supreme Court to a lower court to send up the records of a case so that it can be reviewed by the high court.

Writ of habeas corpus

court order that the authorities show cause for why they are holding a prisoner in custody. Deters unlawful imprisonment.

Writ of mandamus

court order directing a party to perform a certain action.

Docket

a court's calendar, showing the schedule of cases it is to hear

Brief

a written document explain the position of one side or the other in a case

District courts

federal courts where trials are held and lawsuits are begun

Appeals courts

a court that reviews decisions made in the lower district courts

Precedent

a ruling that is used as the basis for a judicial decision in a later, similar case

Subpoena

a court order requiring a person to appear and testify in court

Due process clause

part of the 14th amendment which guarantees that no state deny basic rights to its people

Amicus curiae

friend of the court; one who advises the court on legal matters

Incorporation

a process that extended the protections of the Bill of Rights against the actions of state and local governments

Probable cause

a level of evidence needed to make an arrest or get a search warrant.

Baker v. Carr

SCOTUS that ruled that the federal judiciary has the jurisdiction to rule on political matters such has redistricting and reapportionment.

Marbury v. Madison

SCOTUS case that established principle of judicial review

Tinker v. Des Moines

SCOTUS case that guaranteed a student's right to protest (wearing armbands)

Schenck v. United States

Supreme Court case that established that the first amendment could be denied if it presented a "clear and present danger"

Brown v. Board of Education

Supreme Court case that reversed the doctrine of separate but equal; desegregated school

Gideon v. Wainwright

Supreme Court Case that said state courts are required under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to provide counsel in criminal cases to represent defendants who are unable to afford to pay their own attorneys

New York Times v. US

Supreme Court case that bolstered the freedom of the press, establishing a "heavy presumption against prior restraint."

Engel v. Vitale

Supreme Court case that said school sponsorship of prayer violates the establishment clause.

McCulloch v. Maryland

Supreme Court case that said states cannot tax the federal gov't via the Supremacy Clause.

Shaw v. Reno

Supreme Court case that outlawed racial gerrymandering.

Roe v. Wade

SCOTUS case that said states cannot deny women the right to choose to have an abortion because of the right to privacy.