1. LEARNING OBJECTIVES/ GOALS/ SWBAT
STANDARD(S) ADDRESSED: 12.4 Students analyze the unique roles and responsibilities of the 3 branches of government.
CH 18-SEC 2
LEARNING OBJECTIVES/ GOALS/ SWBAT
Describe the structure and jurisdiction of the federal district courts.
Describe the structure and jurisdiction of the federal courts of appeals.
Describe the structure and jurisdiction of the two other constitutional courts.

2. Guided Reading GUIDED READING 1. District Court a. 94 b. 632 c.
Number of Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
1. District Court a. 94 b.
632 c.
civil and criminal cases involving federal law
2. Court of Appeals a. 12 b.
179 c.
appeals only from federal courts and regulatory agencies

3. Guided Reading GUIDED READING Court Number if Courts Number of Judges
Types of Cases
3. Supreme Court a. 1 b. 9 c.
appeals from State and federal courts and a few types of cases with original jurisdiction
4. Court of International Trade a. 1 b. 9 c.
civil cases relating to trade and tariffs
5. Court of Appeals for Federal Circuit a. 1 b. 12 c.
appeals in federal cases from across the country

4. Guided Reading GUIDED READING
6. On what basis is the United States divided into judicial districts?
Each State forms at least one federal judicial district, no matter what its size or population.
When and why were the courts of appeals created?
They were created in 1891 in order to relieve the Supreme Court of much of the burden of hearing appeals because the High Court's docket had become overwhelming

5. GUIDED READING 8. Criminal case
a case in which a defendant is tried for committing some action that has been declared by law to be a crime
9. Civil case
a case involving a noncriminal matter, such as a dispute over terms of a contract or claims of patent infringement
10. docket
list of cases to be heard

6. A BULLDOG ALWAYS
Commitment
Attitude
CARES
Respect
Encouragement
Safety

7. QUIZ!
First & Last Name
Fill in your
ID NUMBER!
CH-18-2

8. Key Terms
inferior courts: the lower federal courts beneath the Supreme Court
Federal District Courts: federal trial courts
lower courts: courts created by congress
civil case: a court case dealing with a non criminal dispute
Nationwide Jurisdiction: it hears cases from all across the country

9. Additional Key Terms
criminal case: a court case in which a defendant is tried for committing a federal crime
docket: a list of cases to be heard by a court
record: the transcript of the proceedings from a trial court

12. Introduction
What are the structure and jurisdiction of the inferior courts?
District courts are federal trial courts. They are divided into judicial districts and handle about 80 percent of federal cases.
There are 13 courts of appeals that hear appeals from the district courts and special courts.
The Court of International Trade tries civil cases related to the nation’s trade laws.

14. Judicial Districts
Each state forms at least one judicial district, with at least two judges.
Larger states are divided into multiple districts and larger districts may have more judges.
There are 94 district courts serving all 50 states as well as U.S. territories. There are 632 district judges.
NOTE TO TEACHER: This image shows an attorney for Napster, Inc., the online music firm, outside the9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

15. Judicial Districts Most district cases are heard by a single judge.
The types of cases heard are criminal & civil cases involving federal laws.
NOTE TO TEACHER: This image shows an attorney for Napster, Inc., the online music firm, outside the9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

16. civil and criminal cases involving federal law
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
Court
Number of Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
1. District Court a. 94 b.
632 c.
civil and criminal cases involving federal law

17. Multi-Judge Panels
Three-judge panels try some cases involving apportionment, civil rights, or antitrust laws.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is made of 11 district court judges and issues secret search warrants to monitor suspected spies and terrorists.
The Alien Terrorist Removal Court is made up of 5 district judges and decides whether to expel suspected foreign terrorists from the country.

19. District Court Jurisdiction
Checkpoint: What is the principal role of the federal district courts?
District courts have original jurisdiction over more than 80 percent of federal criminal and civil cases.
Federal criminal cases include bank robbery, kidnapping, counterfeiting, mail fraud, tax evasion and terrorism.
Federal civil cases include disputes involving bankruptcy, postal, tax, and civil rights laws.
Checkpoint Answer: District courts have original jurisdiction to try the majority of federal and criminal cases. 19

20. District Court Jurisdiction
In federal criminal cases, the United States is always the prosecutor.
Most federal civil cases are between private parties, but the United States may be a plaintiff or defendant.
Most of the decisions made in district courts are not appealed.
A few cases are appealed to the courts of appeals or directly to the Supreme Court.

23. Courts of Appeals: Structure
Congress created the courts of appeals in 1891 to ease the burden on the Supreme Court.
There are 13 courts of appeals today.
The are 179 judges
Each court of appeals hears cases on appeal from one of the district courts within its circuit.

25. appeals only from federal courts and regulatory agencies
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
Court
Number of Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
2. Court of Appeals a. 12 b.
179 c.
appeals only from federal courts and regulatory agencies

26. Structure, cont.
The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has nationwide jurisdiction.
ONE COURT
12 JUDGES
This 13th circuit court deals with appeals from: Hears appeals in federal cases from all across the country.
The Court of International Trade
The Court of Federal Claims
The Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
The 94 district courts if the case appealed involves copyright or patent issues.

28. Courts of Appeals: Operation
Each circuit court has from 6 to 28 judges, who usually sit in three-judge panels.
A justice of the Supreme Court is also assigned to each circuit.
They do not conduct trials or accept new evidence.
Instead they review the record and the arguments of a case.
Less than one percent of their decisions are appealed to the Supreme Court.

29. Supreme Court
There is ONE SUPREME COURT, it is the highest court in the land.
There are nine judges, one chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices.
They hear cases from both state and federal.

30. US SUPREME COURT Deceased Clarence Thomas: Bush Sr. - 1991
Conservative
Antoio Scalia
Reagan
John Roberts
Bush Jr
Samuel Alito:
Bush Jr. 2005
Ruth Ginsburg:
Clinton
LIBERAL
Elena Kagan
Obama -2010
Stephen Breyer
Clinton
Sonya Sotomayor:
Obama -2009
Anthony Kennedy
Reagan -1989
MODERATE
Deceased

31. GUIDED READING Guided Reading a. 1 b. 9 c.
Court
Number if Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
3. Supreme Court a. 1 b. 9 c.
appeals from State and federal courts and a few types of cases with original jurisdiction

33. Court of International Trade
Congress created the (ONE) Court of International Trade in 1890 and made it a constitutional court in 1980.
The Trade Court’s nine judges sit in panels of three and often hold jury trials in major ports.
The Trade Court has original jurisdiction over all civil cases involving the nation’s international trade and customs laws.

34. civil cases relating to trade and tariffs
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
Court
Number if Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
4. Court of International Trade a. 1 b. 9 c.
civil cases relating to trade and tariffs

35. Courts of Appeals: Structure
Congress created the courts of appeals in 1891 to ease the burden on the Supreme Court.

36. appeals in federal cases from across the country
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
Court
Number if Courts
Number of Judges
Types of Cases
5. Court of Appeals for Federal Circuit a. 1 b. 12 c.
appeals in federal cases from across the country

37. Judicial Districts
Each state forms at least one judicial district, with at least two judges.
Larger states are divided into multiple districts and larger districts may have more judges.
DC and Puerto Rico each have a District.
NOTE TO TEACHER: This image shows an attorney for Napster, Inc., the online music firm, outside the9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

38. 6. On what basis is the United States divided into judicial districts?
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
6. On what basis is the United States divided into judicial districts?
Each State forms at least one federal judicial district, no matter what its size or population.
States with larger populations are further divided.
There are also district courts in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico

41. When and why were the courts of appeals created?
GUIDED READING
Guided Reading
When and why were the courts of appeals created?
They were created in 1891 in order to relieve the Supreme Court of much of the burden of hearing appeals because the High Court's docket had become overwhelming

43. Guided Reading GUIDED READING 8. Criminal case
a case in which a defendant is tried for committing some action that has been declared by law to be a crime
9. Civil case
a case involving a noncriminal matter, such as a dispute over terms of a contract or claims of patent infringement
10. docket
list of cases to be heard

44. Review
Now that you have learned about the structure and jurisdiction of the inferior courts, go back and answer the Chapter Essential Question.
Does the structure of the federal court system allow it to administer justice effectively?

45. QUIZ!
First & Last Name
Fill in your
ID NUMBER!
CH-18-2