The Court System Federal and State Federal Court

The Court System Federal and State

Federal Court System n n n Created by Article III of the Constitution Supreme Court is the only Court Created by the Constitution all other federal courts were created by Congress. Chief Justice John Marshall appointed in 1801 -1835 did much to increase the power of the Court.

Jurisdiction of the Courts n n Jurisdiction-the authority to hear a case. Original Jurisdiction – hear a case first. Appellate Jurisdiction – review decisions of lower courts. Concurrent Jurisdiction – power shared by federal and state courts to hear certain cases.

Marbury v. Madison n The first case in which the Supreme Court declared the actions of one of the other branches of government to be unconstitutional. n Established the principal of Judicial Review

Constitutional Courts (called regular or Art. III courts) n Federal District Courts-created to serve as federal trial courts. n Original jurisdiction- principle courts of court system n 642 judges- 300, 000 cases/yr n 80% of federal caseload n Hear both criminal and civil cases n 94 districts- Judiciary Act of 1789 n Juries n Grand Jury n Indictment of defendents n Petit Jury n Try defendents

Constitutional Courts n n Federal Courts of Appeals- created in 1891 by Congress http: //www. uscourts. gov/courtlinks/ n 12 Judicial Circuits n 1 appellate court in each circuit n 1 court with national jurisdiction n Panel of 3 judges hear each appeal n Very important case the judges my sit (en blanc) n May uphold original decision n Reverse the decision n Send case back to be retried again

Constitutional Courts n United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit-hears cases from: Federal Claims Court n Court of International Trade n United States Patent Office n

Constitutional Courts n Court of International Trade n Based in New York but may listen to cases involving other port cities New Orleans n Houston n San Francisco n n Mainly hears cases involving tariff issues

Legislative Courts n n n United States Claims Court United States Tax Court The Court of Military Appeals Territorial Courts for Washington D. C. The Court of Veterans’ Appeals

Federal Judges n Appointed for life Appointed by President n Approved by the Senate n May be removed through impeachment n n n Senatorial Courtesy Pay is set by congress

The Supreme Court

The Supreme Court n The Supreme court is the only court with both: Original jurisdiction n Appellate jurisdiction n Supreme court is composed of 9 justices http: //www. supremecourtus. gov/about/bi ographiescurrent. pdf n Chief Justice – John Roberts

How Cases Reach the Supreme Court n Discuss List-cases worthy of consideration requires “Rule of Four” for a case to be accepted. Writ of Certiorari n Appeal- When a lower or State court has ruled a law unconstitutional n

How Cases Reach the Supreme Court n Writ of Certiorari-main route for case an order from the court to the lower court to send up the records on a case for review. Belief that a legal error was made in handling the case or n The case raises some serious Constitutional question. n More than 90% of these cases are rejected n

Steps in Deciding Major Cases 1. Submitting Briefs-a written statement setting forth the legal arguments, relevant facts, and precedents supporting one side of a case. n 2. 3. Amicus curiae-briefs submitted by outside interested parties. Oral Arguments-each side is allowed only 30 minutes to summarize the key points of the case. The Conference-on Fridays the justices meet to discuss the cases they have heard. Then they vote on the case.

Steps in Deciding Major Cases 4. Writing the Opinion Majority opinion- Court’s opinion n Opinion of Court Decision and reasoning Dissenting opinion n n Disagree w/Majority opinion Concurring opinion n n Agree, add/emphasize new point

Texas Court System n Types of Law Constitutional Law n Statutory Law n Administrative Law n Common Law-unwritten judge made law n n n Stare decisis (precedent) Equity-preventative law n Injuctions

Texas Court System n Types of Law n Criminal Law- offenses against public order Felony-greater crime n Misdemeanor-lesser offense n n Civil Law n Human conduct n Divorce, custody disputes

Texas Court System n Local Trial Courts n Justice of the Peace Traffic violations n Disturbing the peace n Civil cases less than $5, 000 n n Municipal Courts Traffic violations (most of its cases) n Criminal cases with fines under $2, 000 n

Texas Court System n County-Level Courts n General Trial Courts (de novo) Criminal Courts n Civil Courts n Family Court n Juvenile Court n n Intermediate Appellate Courts

Texas Court System n County-Level Courts n Court of Criminal Appeals-highest level court for criminal cases. 9 justices who are elected n Serve a 6 year term that are staggered. n n Texas State Supreme Court-highest level court for civil cases. 9 justices who are elected n Serve a 6 year term that are staggered. n

Judges in Texas n n All Judges in Texas hold elected positions with a specified term. If a vacancies occurs the vacancy is filled by appointment until the next election.