CHAPTER 18:3 Supreme Court

Chapter 18:3

o We will examine the reasons why the Supreme Court is often called the higher court.

o We will examine why judicial review is a key feature in the American System of Government especially in regards to Marbury v. Madison.

Isa_33:22 For the LORD is our judge,

the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our

king; he will save us.

The Supreme Court:

o The Supreme Court of the United States is the only court specifically created in the Constitution.

o It is made up of the chief justice of the United States, whose office is also established by the Constitution, and eight associate justices.

o The framers quite purposely placed the Court on an equal plane with the President and Congress designed it as the apex, the highest point, of the nation’s judicial system.

The Supreme Court:

o As the highest court in the land, the

Supreme Court stands as the court of

last resort in all questions of federal

law.

o That is, it is the final authority in any

case involving any questions arising

under the Constitution, the act of

congress, or a treaty of the United

States.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o They have the extraordinary power to decide the constitutionality of an act of government, whether executive, legislative, or judicial.

o The ultimate exercise of the power rests with the Supreme Court of the United States.

o That single fact makes the Supreme Court the final authority on the meaning of the Constitution.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o The Constitution does not in so

many words provide for the

power of judicial review.

o Still, there is little room for

doubt that the Framers

intended that the federal

courts—and, in particular, the

Supreme Court-should have

the power.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o The court first asserted its power of

judicial review in the classic case of

Marbury v. Madison in 1803.

o The case arose in the aftermath of

the stormy elections of 1800.

o Thomas Jefferson and his Anti-

Federalists had won the presidency

and control of both houses of

congress.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o The outgoing Federalists, stung by

their defeat, then tried to pack the

judiciary with loyal party members.

o Thomas Jefferson took over the next

day as President.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o Marbury based his suit on a provision of the Judiciary Act of 1789, in which Congress had created the federal court system.

o That law gave the Supreme Court the right to hear such suits in its original jurisdiction (not on appeal from a lower court).

o In a unanimous opinion written by Chief Justice John Marshall, the court refused Marbury’s request.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o It did so because it found the section of the judiciary act on which Marbury had based his case in conflict with the Constitution, and therefore void.

o Specifically it found the statute in Article III, Section 2, Clause 2.

o The impact of the Court’s decision goes far beyond the fate of obscure Marbury.

JUDICIAL REVIEW:

o In this decision, Chief Justice

Marshall claimed for the Court the

right to declare acts of Congress

unconstitutional, and so laid the

foundation for the judicial branch’s

key role in the development of the

American system of government.

Discussion Questions • What laws do you see today that you think

that the Supreme Court should overturn and

deem unconstitutional and explain why.

Marshall’s power opinion was based on three propositions.

o (1) The Constitution is, by its own terms, the supreme law of the land.

o (2) All legislative enactments, and all other actions of government, are subordinate to and cannot be allowed to conflict with the supreme law.

o (3) Judges are sworn to enforce the provisions of the Constitution and therefore must refuse to enforce any government action they find to be in conflict with it.

Marshall’s power opinion was based on three propositions.

o The court has used judicial review in

thousands of cases since 1803.

o Usually upheld (but sometimes

denied) the constitutionality of

federal and state actions.

Marshall’s power opinion was based on three propositions.

o Each year it hears dozens of cases in

which questions of constitutionality

are not raised, in which federal law

still is interpreted and applied.

o Thus, any of the more important

statutes that Congress has passed

have been brought to the Supreme

Court time and again for decision.

Marshall’s power opinion was based on three propositions.

o So, too, have many of the lesser

ones.

o In interpreting those laws and

applying them to specific situations,

the Court has had a real impact on

both their meaning and their effect.

JURISDICTION:

o The Supreme Court has both original

and appellate jurisdiction.

o But most of its cases come on

appeal, from the lower federal courts

and from the highest state courts.

JURISDICTION:

o Article III, Section 2 of the

Constitution spells out two classes of

cases that may be heard by the High

Court in its original jurisdiction.

o (1) Those to which a state is a party

and

o (2) Those affecting ambassadors,

other public ministers, and consuls.

JURISDICTION:

o Congress cannot enlarge on this

constitutional grant of original

jurisdiction.

o If Congress could do so, it would in

effect be amending the Constitution.

o But Congress can implement the

constitutional provision, and it has

done so.

JURISDICTION:

o It has provided that the Court shall

have original and exclusive

jurisdiction over:

o (1) All controversies between two or

more states.

JURISDICTION:

o (2) All cases brought against ambassadors

or other public ministers, but not consuls.

o The court may, if it chooses to do so, take original jurisdiction over any other case covered by the broad wording in Article III, Section 2 of the Constitution.

o But almost always, those cases are tried in the lower courts.

o The Supreme Court only hears a very small number of cases in its original jurisdiction.

o In fact, only a case or two each term.

JURISDICTION:

o (3) Article III Section 2 of the

Constitution also gives to Congress the power to set the Court’s appellate jurisdiction.

o However, Congress has given it an increasingly broad authority to choose the cases it will review.

o Today, that authority is practically complete.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o Some 8,000 cases are now appealed to the Supreme Court each year.

o Of these, the Court accepts only a few hundred for decisions.

o The Court selects those cases it will hear according to the rule of four; at least four of its nine justices must agree that a case should be put on the court’s docket.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o More than half the cases decided by the

Court are disposed by brief orders.

o An order may remand (return) a case to

a lower court for reconsideration in the

light of some other recent related case

decided by the Higher Court.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o Most cases reach the Supreme Court by

Writ of Certiorari (Latin for “to be made

more certain”).

o This writ is an order by the court

directing a lower court to send up the

record in a given case for its review.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o Either party to a case can petition the

court to issue a writ, but again, “cert” is

granted in only a limited number of

instances.

o Typically, only when a petition raises

some important constitutional question

o or a serious problem of statutory

interpretation.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o When certiorari is denied, the decision of the lower court stands in that particular case.

o But the denial of cert is not a decision on the merits of a case.

o All that a denial means is that, for whatever reason, four or more justices could not agree that the Supreme Court should accept that case for review.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o A few cases reach the Court through

certificate.

o This process is used when a lower court

is not clear about the procedure or the

rule of law that should apply in a case.

o The lower court asks the Supreme Court

to certify the answer to a specific

question in the matter.

HOW CASES REACH THE COURT:

o Most cases that reach the court do so

from the highest state courts and the

federal courts of appeal.

o A few do come, however, from the

federal district courts and a very few

from the Court of Military Appeals.

Discussion Questions • Find a partner and list four issues that you

feel that the Supreme Court should hear and

explain the reasons why.

THE SUPREME COURT AT WORK:

o The Court sits from the first Monday of

October to sometime the following June

or July.

THE SUPREME COURT AT WORK:

o Once the Supreme Court accepts a case, it sets a date on which lawyers on both sides will present oral arguments.

o At these public sessions, the lawyer makes their oral arguments.

o Their presentations are almost always limited to 30 minutes.

o Most lawyers try to use that half hour to emphasize the major points they made in their written briefs.

BRIEFS:

o Briefs are written documents filed with the Court before oral arguments.

o They are detailed statements that support one side of a case and are largely built of relevant facts and the citation of previous cases.

o Many run hundreds of pages.

o The Court may also receive amicus curiae (friend of the court) briefs.

BRIEFS:

o These are briefs filed by persons or groups who are not actual parties of the case but who nonetheless have a substantial interest in its outcome.

o Thus, for example, cases involving such highly charged matters as abortion or affirmative action regularly attract a large number of amicus briefs.

o But they can only be filed only with the Court’s permission, or at its request.

THE SOLICITOR GENERAL:

o The Solicitor General, a principal officer

in the Department of Justice, is often

called the Federal Government’s chief

lawyer.

o The Solicitor General represents the

United States in all cases to which it is

party in the Supreme Court, and may

appear in any federal or state court.

THE SOLICITOR GENERAL:

o He or she decides which cases the

government should ask the Supreme

Court to review and, also, what position

the United States should take in cases

before the High Court.

o The solicitor general often files amicus

briefs, urging the Federal Government’s

views in those cases.

How A Case Is Decided:

o On Wednesday and Fridays through a term,

the justices meet in conference.

o There, in closest secrecy, they consider the cases in which they have heard oral arguments.

o The Chief Justice presides over the conference.

o He speaks first on each case to be considered, and usually indicates how he intends to vote.

How A Case Is Decided:

o Then each associate justice summarizes

his or her views.

o Those presentations are made in order

of seniority.

o With the justice most recently named to

the court speaking last.

o After the justices are “polled,” they

usually debate the case.

How A Case Is Decided:

o About a third of all the Court’s decisions

are unanimous, but most find the court

divided.

o The High Court is sometimes criticized

for its decisions.

OPINIONS:

o If the chief justice is in the majority on a

case, he assigns the writing of the court

opinion.

o When the chief justice is in the minority,

the assignment is handled by the senior

associate justice on the majority side.

OPINIONS:

o The court’s opinion is often called the

majority opinion.

o Officially, it is the opinion of the court.

o It announces the Court’s decision in a case and sets out the reasoning on which it is based.

o Often, one or more of the justices who agree with the Court’s decision may write a concurring opinion to make or emphasize a point that was not made in the majority opinion.

OPINIONS:

o The Court’s written opinions are

exceedingly valuable.

o The majority opinions stand as

precedents to be followed in similar

cases as they arise in the lower courts or

reach the Supreme Court.

OPINIONS:

o The concurring opinions may bring the

Supreme Court to modify its present

stand in future cases.

o On rare occasions, the Supreme Court

does reverse itself, the minority opinion

of today could become the court’s

majority position in the future.

Discussion Questions • Do you think the Supreme Court has too

much power being the final authority in

regards to the Constitution? Do you feel

comfortable that nine individuals that serve

for life and not elected to their position can

overturn both state and federal laws?

Chapter 18:4

o We will examine the various

special courts in the Federal

Court System.

Federal Court System:

o The Federal Court system is made

up of two quite distinct types of

courts:

o (1) The Constitutional, or regular

courts.

o (2) The special courts.

U.S. Federal Claims Court:

o The United States cannot be sued by

anyone, in any court, for any reason

without its consent.

o It may be taken to court only in those

cases in which Congress has declared

that the government is open to suit.

U.S. Federal Claims Court:

o Originally, a person with a claim against

the United States could secure redress—satisfaction of the claim, payment—only by an act of Congress.

o Now Congress has the Federal Claims Court to hear these pleas.

o It is composed of 16 judges appointed by the President and Senate for 15 year terms.

U.S. Federal Claims Court:

o They hold trials and hear claims for

damages against the government throughout the country.

o Those claims they uphold cannot be in fact be paid until Congress appropriates the money, which it does almost as a matter of standard procedure.

o Appeals from the court’s decisions may be carried to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

The Territorial Courts:

o Acting under its power to “make all

needful rules and regulations respecting

the territory … belonging to the United

States,” Congress has created courts for

the nation’s territories.

o These courts sit in the Virgin Islands,

Guam, and the Northern Marianas and

function much as do the local courts in

each of the 50 states.

THE COURTS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:

o Acting under its power “to exercise

exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District … as may … become the seat of the United States,” Congress has set up a judicial system for the nation’s capital.

o Both the District Court and the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia hear many local cases as well as those they try as constitutional courts.

THE COURTS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:

o Congress has also established two local

courts, much like the courts in the

States; a superior court, which is the

general trial court, and a court of

appeals.

THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES:

o Acting under its power “to make rules for

the government and regulation of the land and naval forces.”

o Congress in 1950 created what is now called the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

o The court is a civilian tribunal.

o Its chief judge and four associate judges are not members of the armed forces.

THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES:

o Appeals from its decisions can be, but

almost never are, heard by the Supreme

Court.

o The Court of Appeals for the Armed

Forces is, often the court of last resort in

most cases involving offense against

military law.

THE UNITED STATES TAX COURT:

o Acting under its constitutionally granted

powers to tax, Congress established the

United States Tax Court, in 1969.

o The Tax Court has 19 judges, one of

whom serves as chief judge.

o Each of these 19 judges is named by the

President and Senate for a 12-year term.

THE UNITED STATES TAX COURT:

o Tax Court hears civil, but not criminal,

cases involving disputes over the

application of the tax laws.

o Most of its cases, then are generated by

the Internal Revenue Service and other

Treasury Department agencies.

o Its decisions may be appealed to the

federal courts of appeals.

Discussion Questions • What should the U.S. do with the prisoners

they captured in the War in Terrorism?

Should they be placed in trial for their

alleged crimes or just be imprisoned without

a crime proving their guilt?