Intro to the U.S. Legal System

Branches and Structures of the U.S. Government

• Legislative Branch (Congress): This branch is responsible for making the law. It is comprised of two distinct bodies:
      * The Senate: Consists of $100$ members, with exactly $2$ representatives from each state.
      * The House of Representatives: Consists of $435$ members, who are elected from states according to their respective populations.
• Executive Branch: This branch is responsible for enforcing the law. Its structure includes:
      * The President of the United States.
      * The Cabinet.
      * Administrative agencies and other specific agencies.
• Judicial Branch: This branch is responsible for interpreting the law. It is organized into a hierarchical system of courts:
      * The Supreme Court: The highest court in the land.
      * Circuit Courts of Appeals: Intermediate appellate courts.
      * District Courts: The primary trial courts at the federal level.
• The Separation of Powers: Defined by the U.S. Constitution, which allocates specific roles to each branch to ensure a system of checks and balances:
      * Legislative: Senate and House of Representatives (Makes the law).
      * Executive: President, cabinet, and administrative agencies (Enforces the law).
      * Judicial: Judges and Courts (Interprets law).

Principal Types of Law

• Constitutional Law:
      * Consists of both the U.S. Constitution and individual state constitutions.
      * Regarded as the "supreme law of the land."
      * Specifically addresses the relationship between individuals and their government.
• Statutory Law:
      * Also referred to as legislative law.
      * Consists of ever-changing rules created by legislative bodies, such as Congress.
      * Includes codes, bills, acts, and local ordinances.
      * WAC (Washington Administrative Code): Specific administrative rules for the state of Washington.
      * RCW (Revised Code of Washington): The compilation of all permanent laws now in force in Washington state.
      * Uniform Laws: Standardized laws drafted for potential adoption by states; however, the State Legislature must still formally adopt them for them to take effect.
• Regulatory / Administrative Law:
      * Consists of rules, regulations, orders, and decisions passed by administrative agencies.
      * Administrative agencies are federal, state, or local government entities established to perform specific functions.
      * At the federal level, these agencies are part of the Executive Branch and pass laws through "enabling legislation."
• Executive Orders:
      * Issued by U.S. Presidents.
      * Directed toward officers and agencies of the Federal Government.
      * Authority is derived from statutes or the Constitution.
      * May also be based on Acts of Congress that delegate discretionary power to the President.
• Common / Case Law:
      * Law established from court decisions.
      * Based heavily on precedent.
      * Stare Decisis (Doctrine of Precedent): The principle of following historical cases when making a new decision.
      * Absence of Precedent: When no precedent exists, courts look to:
          * Persuasive authority: Legal authorities that a court may consult but is not bound to follow.
          * Public policy: Principles of social or ethical importance.

The Common Law Tradition and Remedies

• Courts of Equity:
      * Provide equitable remedies.
      * Focus on requiring a party to perform an action ("to do") or forcing them to "refrain from doing" a particular action (injunctions).
• Courts of Law:
      * Focus on legal or monetary remedies.
      * Primary remedy is the payment of money as compensation for loss or injury.

Classification of Laws: Civil and Criminal

• Civil Law:
      * Concerns the relationships between individuals (referred to as private law) or between individuals and the government (referred to as public law).
      * Encompasses all law that is not classified as criminal.
      * The objective is typically the award of monetary compensation.
      * An individual has the standing to sue another person, a business, or the government.
      * Standard of Proof: The usual standard required for a verdict is a "preponderance of the evidence."
• Criminal Law (Public Law):
      * Established to protect the public as a whole from the harmful acts of others.
      * Citizens cannot initiate these suits; they must be brought by a government entity, such as a state District Attorney or a Federal Prosecutor.
      * Standard of Proof: The standard is "beyond a reasonable doubt."
      * Consequences: If a defendant is found guilty, results include fines and/or imprisonment.
      * Categorization of Crimes:
          1. Felonies: Serious crimes.
          2. Misdemeanors: Less serious offenses.

Substantive vs. Procedural Law

• Substantive Law:
      * Defines the actual rights and responsibilities of individuals in civil law.
      * Defines what constitutes a crime and the associated punishments in criminal law.
      * These may be codified in statutes or exist through precedent in common law.
• Procedural Law:
      * The set of rules or order in which a court hears and determines what occurs during a lawsuit, civil hearing, criminal hearing, or administrative hearing.
      * Like substantive law, these may be codified in statutes or established via precedent in common law.

Hierarchy and Precedence of Law

• Precedence of Statutes:
      * Federal laws have precedence over state laws.
      * State laws have precedence over city or municipal laws.
• Precedence of Court Decisions:
      * Supreme Court cases have precedence over all other court decisions.
• General Hierarchy of Courts (from highest to lowest relevance/authority):
      1. The Supreme Court (U.S.).
      2. Federal Appellate Courts.
      3. Federal Courts (District level).
      4. State Supreme Court.
      5. State Appellate Court.
      6. State Superior Court.
      7. Small Claims and other lower courts.