FEDERAL COURTS

The Federal Courts  Constitution Establishes one court by name – The Supreme Court (Art. III).  Inferior Courts are established by Congress  First inferior courts were established by the Judiciary Act of  The Judiciary Act of 1875 created the system that we see today.

US District Courts  There are 94 courts, allocated by population.  District Courts are original jurisdiction courts, or trial courts.  District courts hear both civil and criminal cases.  Personnel include: judges, magistrates, US Attorney, US Marshals, bailiffs, permanent court staff.  Most federal cases begin and end at the district level; sometimes the losers of a case will appeal to a higher court

US Courts of Appeal  This layer of the judicial system was created in 1875 to lighten the load on the Supreme Court  The courts of appeal have appellate jurisdiction – which means that they hear cases that are appealed from a lower court  There are 12 Courts of Appeal, each assigned to a “circuit,” or area in which they have jurisdiction  In most cases, appeals are heard by three judges, which review the legal aspects of the case and decide by majority vote

US Supreme Court  The Supreme Court has a number of roles to perform in the US system:  it checks the other two branches of government,  it resolves conflicts between states,  and it ensures that the federal court system has a more uniform interpretation of laws  The Court is made up of nine justices – eight associate justices and one chief justice

US Supreme Court  The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over:  Cases involving foreign diplomats  Cases between the federal government and a state  Cases between two or more states  Cases between a state and citizen of another state  Cases between a state and a foreign country  Though this seems like a big list, the vast majority of cases fall under the court’s appellate jurisdiction from federal courts of appeals and from state courts