| A | B |
|---|
| Article III | from the Constitution. Sets the rules and enumerated powers to the judicial branch (need to know) |
| Federalist #78 | written by Hamilton. States that the judicial branch will be the weakest because it cannot enforce judgments |
| Federal Court Jurisdiction | the Supreme Court can only hear cases involving states opposing each other or constitutional issues |
| Judicial activism | Supreme Court justice idea that they should make lots of change and influence politics |
| Judicial restraint | the idea that the Supreme Court should strictly adhere to the Constitution |
| Judicial selection process | chosen by the president and confirmed by the Senate |
| Writ of ceritiorari | an order by a higher court directing a lower court to send the record in a given case to review |
| Oral argument | in the Supreme Court, arguments that are made to influence Supreme Court justices. These have strict time limits |
| Judicial conference | the group that decides the rules for U.S. courts |
| Judicial decision making factors | ideas such as friends, family, personal life, personal beliefs, political association, etc. |
| Check on decision making | Congress can amend the Constitution, the executive branch interprets how the interpretation should be implemented, decisions can be reversed (example Plessy v Ferguson), etc. |
| Judicial tenure | judges serve for life and cannot be fired unless they commit a heinous act |
| Trial courts | original case |
| Appellate courts | If a ruling is thought to be unfair or unconstitutional, it is taken to a court to review it |
| District court | trial or state court |
| Circuit court | appellate court |
| Senatorial courtesy | the president consults the home senator before nominating an individual to the Supreme Court because he needs their support |
| Political questions | they decide whether or not to hear a case. Often, if the case is overly controversial, they will opt to not hear the case. In addition to deciding which cases to hear, they rule on cases, write their opinions, and make suggestions for implementation |
| Solicitor general | supervises and conducts federal litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court |
| Justiciable dispute | seeks to address whether a court possesses the ability to provide adequate resolution of the dispute. Some matters, as a result, are not justiciable |
| Plaintiff | person making the complaint/suing |
| Criminal law | guilt must be proven beyond the shadow of a doubt. Penalties under this type of trial can include jail time, fines, community service, the death penalty, etc. |
| Civil law | has to be decided by a preponderance of evidence. This is only monetary compensation (no jail time) |
| Litigants | person or people engaged in a lawsuit |
| Standing | ability of a party to demonstrate to the court that there is a sufficient connection to and harm from the law or action being challenged (basically, whether or not an individual has been harmed) |
| Class action suit | a large number of people band together to sue a certain person/industry for a harm (example- when a medication if proven to have adverse side effects, groups will get together to sue to pool their resources, but only a few people represent the large group usually) |
| Precedence | what has happened legally before (what other decisions have been made about a similar incident?) |
| Per curiam decision | ruling issued by an appellate court with multiple judges in which the decision was made by the court acting as a single entity |
| Opinions | in Supreme Court cases, a majority opinion is written and a dissenting opinion is written. The group that ruled in the larger number writes the majority opinion. This may be written by one or all of the judges. The dissenters also write an opinion |
| Stare decisis | legal principle under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in earlier court decisions |
| Original intent theory | the judicial branch would be the weakest |
| Writ of mandamus | issued by a superior court to compel a lower court or government officer to perform mandatory duties correctly |
| Strict constructionism | Constitution should be followed word for word and adhered to closely |
| Loose constructionism | Constitution should be followed but needs to be flexible for the changing times; they are more of suggestions and guidelines |
| Court packing plan | a plan to increase the number of Supreme Court justices to change the political leanings (attempted by FDR) |
