20.1 - The nature and role of the Supreme Court Flashcards
Chapter 20.1 - the nature and role of the Supreme Court
the nature and role of the supreme court
What did Congress pass in 1789 to create the US courts system?
The Federal Judiciary Act 1789
What was the initial makeup of the Supreme Court?
- 1 chief justice
- 5 associate justices
How many district courts are there in the US?
94
How many appellate/circuit courts are there in the US?
13
What is an appellate court?
A court of appeal
What is the Supreme Court’s power of ‘original jurisdiction’?
The right of the Supreme Court to be the first court to hear a case in certain circumstances, rather than need the case to be an appeal
How many original jurisdiction cases have there been since the creation of the Supreme Court?
Fewer than 200
What % of cases sent to the Supreme Court each year are heard?
Less than 1%
What did the Constitution aim to make the Supreme Court?
Independent
What is a Baron de Montesquieu quote about the Supreme Court being independent?
‘There is no liberty if the judiciary power be not separated from the legislative and executive’
What is a Truman quote about a president appointing Supreme Court justices and their independence?
‘Whenever you put a man on the Supreme Court, he ceases to be your friend’
When was the number of justices sat on the Supreme Court set at 9?
The Judiciary Act 1869
How does the Constitution protect the salary of Supreme Court justices?
It prevents the salary of justices being lowered during their term in office
When are vacancies on the Supreme Court available?
When a current justice dies, retires or is impeached
What Supreme Court justice retired in 2022 and was replaced by Ketanji Brown?
Stephen Breyer
What Supreme Court justice died in 2020 and was replaced by Amy Coney Barrett?
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
What Supreme Court justice retired in 2018 and was replaced by Brett Kavanaugh?
Anthony Kennedy
What do justices have, which shows the independence of the Supreme Court?
They are appointed for life
How does the appointment of justices protect the independence of the Supreme Court?
The Constitution requires the Senate to approve the presidential nomination to the Supreme Court, which prevents one branch from dominating the Supreme Court
How does the separation of powers protect the Court’s independence?
It has the power of judicial review
What association rates the suitability of each of the justices nominated?
The American Bar Association (ABA)
What did the Supreme Court rule in regards to whether Trump’s ‘Muslim travel ban’ was constitutional or not in ‘Trump v Hawaii’ (2018)?
That the executive power of the president covered immigration matters and national security
What decision did the Supreme Court overturn in June 2020 by the Trump administration?
The administration’s decision to eliminate DACA
In what two 19th century Supreme Court cases was the power of judicial review established?
- ‘Marbury v Madison’ - 1803
- ‘Fletcher v Peck’ - 1810
What did Chief Justice Charles Hughes Evans say in 1907?
‘We are under a Constitution, but the Constitution is what the judges say it is’
What did the Supreme Court overturn in the 2016 case of ‘Texas v U.S.’?
Obama’s DAPA executive order
What did the Supreme Court rule in the ‘United States v Windsor’ case of 2013?
That the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was unconstitutional
In what case did the Supreme Court declare the 2006 Military Commissions Act unconstitutional?
‘Boumediene v Bush’ - 2008
