AP Gov't Ch. 16 Flashcards
Standing To Sue
The requirement that plaintiffs have a serious interest in a case, which depends on whether they have sustained or are likely to sustain a direct and substantial injury from another party or from an action of government.
Class Action Suits
Lawsuits in which a small number of people sue on behalf of all people in similar circumstances.
Justiciable Disputes
Issues capable of being settle as a matter of law.
Amicus Curiae Briefs
Legal briefs by a “friend of the court” for the purpose of influencing a court’s decision by raising additional points of view and presenting information not contained in the briefs of the formal parties.
Original Jurisdiction
The jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial. These are the courts that determine the facts about a case.
Appellate Jurisdiction
The jurisdiction of courts that hear cases brought to them on appeal from lower courts. These courts do not review the factual record, only the legal issues involved.
District Courts
The 91 federal courts of original jurisdiction. They are the only federal courts in which trials are held and in which juries may be impaneled.
Courts of Appeal
Appellate courts empowered to review all final decisions of district courts, except in rare cases. In addition, they also hear appeals to order of many federal regulatory agencies.
Supreme Court
The pinnacle of the American Judicial system. The Court ensures uniformity in interpreting national laws, resolves conflicts among states, and maintains national supremacy in law.
Senatorial Courtesy
An unwritten tradition whereby nominations for state-level federal judicial posts are usually not confirmed if they are opposed by a senator of the president’s party from the star in which the nominee will serve. The tradition also applies to courts of appeal when there is opposition from a senator of the president’s party who is from the nominee’s state.
Solicitor General
A presidential appointee and the third-ranking office in the Department of Justice. The solicitor general is in charge of the appellate court litigation of the federal government.
Opinion
A statement of legal reasoning behind a judicial decision. the continent of an opinion may be as important as the decision itself.
Stare Decisis
A latin phrase meaning “let the decision stand.” Most cases reaching appellate courts are settled on this principle.
Precedent
How similar cases have been decided in the past.
Judicial Implementation
How and whether court decisions are translated into actual policy, thereby affecting the behavior of others. The courts rely on other units of government to enforce their decisions.
Original Intent
A view that the Constitution should be interpreted according to the original intent of the Framers. Many conservatives support this view.
Marbury v. Madison
The 1803 case in which Chief Justice John Marshall and his associates first asserted the right of the Supreme Court to determine the meaning of the U.S. Constitution. The decision established the Court’s power of Judicial Review over acts of Congress, in this case the Judiciary Act of 1789.
Judicial Review
The power of the courts to determine where acts of Congress and, by implication, the executive are in accord with the U.S. Constitution.
Judicial Restraint
A judicial philosophy in which judges play minimal policymaking roles, leaving that duty strictly to the legislatures.
Judicial Activism
A judicial philosophy in which judges make bold policy devisions, even charting new constitutional ground. Advocates of this approach emphasize that the courts can correct pressing needs, especially those unmet by the majoritarian political process.
Political Questions
A doctrine developed by the federal courts and used as a means to avoid deciding some cases, principally those involving conflicts between the president and Congress.
Statutory Construction
The judicial interpretation of an act of Congress. In some cases where statutory construction is an issue. Congress passes new legislation to clarify existing laws.
