Govt Ch 16

one in which courts provide an arena for 2 parties to bring their conflic before an impartial arbiter; justice will emerge out of the struggle

• criminal law case
• civil law case

Government charges an individual who violated specific laws

no charge that law has been violated; involves a dispute between 2 parties

laws passed by legislatures

accumulation of judicial decisions

• litigants
• groups
• attorneys

• plaintiff
• defendent
• jury

legitimate reason to go to court

lawsuits permitting a small number of people to sue on behalf of others similarly situated

issues capable of bieng settled by legal means

established by the Constitution

specialized courts

first court to hear a case; determine facts about that case

hear cases brought by appeal from a lower court

91 federal courts of original jurisdiction

involved civil suits between citizens of different states or nations

courts empowered to review all final decisions of district courts (12 judicial circuits)

resolves conflicts among states; maintains national supremacy in the law; ensures uniformity in the interpretation of national laws

nominations for state-level federal judicial posts aren't confirmed if opposed by a Senator from the state in which the nominee will serve

Made by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

White, male, 50s-60s, Protestant

Thurgood Marshall (first African American) and Sandra Day O'Connor (first woman).

• federal or state request for court review
• appeals discussed (98% denied)
• obtain 4 votes
• placed on docket

formal document that calls up a case

a decision made without explanation

in charge of the appellate court litigation of the federal government

• on docket
• briefs submitted
• argument
• votes taken
• opinions drafted
• decision announced

statement of the legal reasoning behind the decision (dissenting or concurring)

"let the decision stand" (of a decision on a case previously made)

the way similar cases were handled in the past

1/3

view that the Constitution should be interpreted according to the original intent of the framers

how and whether court decisions are translated into actual policy thereby affcting the behavior of others

• interpreting population (lawyers, judges)
• implementing population (govt agencies, law enforcement)
• consumer population

established in Marbury v. Madison under John Marshall

• John Marshall & judicial review
• FDR & the Nine Old Men + "court packing scheme"
• Warren Court & desegregation
• Burger Court & United States v. Nixon; Roe v. Wade
• Rehnquist Court & conservatism

the popular majority

• judicial restraint
• judicial activism

judges adhere closely to precedent and play minimum policymakng roles

judges make bolder policy decisions; they correct pressing needs unmet by majoritarian political process

doctrine developed by the federal courts and used as a means to avoid deciding some cases, especially those involving conflicts between the president & Congress

judicial interpretation of an act of Congress