Judicial Branch Vocab

Jurisdiction- the authority to decide certain cases

Original jurisdiction- the authority of a court to act as the first court to hear a case, which includes the finding of facts in the case.

Appellate jurisdiction- the authority of a court to hear and review decisions made by lower courts in that system. 

Concurrent jurisdiction- more than one court has the authority to hear and decide the case 

Constitutional courts- high courts that primarily deal with constitutional law (it can rule laws unconstitutional) 

Courts of Appeal- appeals are taken here in both a federal and state circuit

Legislative courts- Congress created these courts to help carry out duties that once belonged to the legislative branch

Senatorial courtesy- an agreement among senators not to vote for any presidential nominee who is opposed by the senators from the nominee's home state

Rule of Law- the principle that no one, including public officials, is above

the law.

Writ of certiorari- the process through which most cases reach the Supreme Court; after four justices concur that the Court should hear the case, a writ of certiorari is issued to the lower court to request the relevant case records.

Writ of Mandamus- a court writing to an inferior court official to make the official do an action that is ministerial in nature

Amicus curiae briefs- legal briefs provided by a friend of the court for the purpose of raising additional information and points of view

Brief- concise legal documents submitted to a court that outline the arguments, relevant laws, and facts pertaining to a case. 

Certificate- A lower court asking the Supreme Court about a rule or a law or a procedure in specific cases

Majority opinion- a majority of justices agree on the decision and its reason

Concurring opinion- A justice who agrees with the majority opinion and offers an opinion that does not agree with the reasoning of the decision.

Dissenting opinion- A justice who does not agree on the decision and its reason (disagree with the majority)

Precedents - a judicial decision that guides future courts in handling similar cases. 

Judicial Activism- a philosophy of constitutional interpretation that justices should wield the power of judicial review, sometimes creating bold new policies.

Judicial Restraint- philosophy of constitutional interpretation that asserts justices should be cautious in overturning laws. 

Strict constructionist- they only go off of what is written in the constitution verbatim (e.g- Jefferson)

Loose Constructionist- loosely interprets the constitution and uses the elastic clause to justify acts (e.g- Hamilton)