ApGovCh.9.Alyssa.Lujano

Question 1

Lame duck

Answer 1

An executive or legislature during the period just before the end of a term of office, when its power and influence are considered to be diminished.

Sentence: President Adams was considered a lame duck due to the short period of time between the election and the President’s Inauguration.

Question 2

Jurisdiction

Answer 2

Authority vested in a particular court to hear and decide the issues in a particular case.

Sentence: The court’s two types of Jurisdiction are original and appellate.

Question 3

Appellate jurisdiction

Answer 3

The power vested in particular courts to review and/ or revise the decision of a lower court.

Sentence: The Appellate Jurisdiction is included in all cases of the Supreme Court.

Question 4

Federalist No. 78

Answer 4

A Federalist Papers essay authored by Alexander Hamilton that covers the role of the federal judiciary, including the power of judicial review.

Sentence: The “ independence of judges” was needed to protect the rights of the citizens and the Constitution.

Question 5

Judiciary Act of 1789

Answer 5

Legislative act that established the basic three-tiered structure of the federal court system.

Sentence: The size of the Supreme Court was set at six by the Congress, in the Judiciary Act of 1789.

Question 6

John Jay

Answer 6

A member of the Founding generation who was the first Chief Justice of the United States. A diplomat and a co-author of The Federalist Papers.

Sentence: George Washington appointed John Jay as The chief of justice of the Supreme Court.

Question 7

Whiskey Rebellion

Answer 7

A civil insurrection in 1974 that was put down by military force by President George Washington, thereby confirming the power of the new national government.

Sentence: The imposition of a national excise tax on whiskey, led to the Whiskey Rebellion.

Question 8

Chisholm v. Georgia (1793)

Answer 8

A Supreme Court case that allowed U.S. citizens to bring a lawsuit against states in which they did not reside; overturned by the Eleventh Amendment in 1789.

Sentence: In Chisholm v. Georgia, associate Justice James Wilson declared the “ haughty notions of state independence, state sovereignty, and state supremacy” to be wrong.

Question 9

Eleventh Amendment

Answer 9

An amendment adopted in 1789 protecting states from being sued in federal court by a citizen of a different state or country.

Sentence: The Judicial power was limited by the Judicial Court.

Question 10

John Marshall

Answer 10

The longest- serving Supreme Court chief justice, Marshall served from 1801 to 1835. Marshall’s decision in Marbury v. Madison (1803) established the principle of judicial review in the United States.

Sentence: John Marshall helps establish the role and power of the court.

Question 11

Judicial Review

Answer 11

Power of the courts to review acts of other branches of government and the states.

Sentence: John Marshall asserted that the Constitutions supremacy clause implies the right of judicial review.

Question 12

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Answer 12

Case in which the Supreme Court first asserted the power of judicial review by finding that part of the congressional statute extending the Court’s original jurisdiction was unconstitutional.

Sentence: Marbury v. Madison is considered one of the foundations of the U.S. Constitutional law.

Question 13

Trial Court

Answer 13

Court of original jurisdiction where cases begin.

Sentence: The three-tiered system contains the trial courts in the bottom.

Question 14

Appellate Court

Answer 14

Court that generally reviews only finding of law made by lower courts.

Sentence: Appellate Court are termed courts of appeals.

Question 15

Constitutional (or article III) courts

Answer 15

Federal courts specifically created by the U.S. Constitution or by Congress pursuant to its authority in article III.

Sentence: Constitutional Courts help empower the judicial branch.

Question 16

Legislative Courts

Answer 16

Courts established by Congress for specialized purposes, such as the Court of Appeals for Veterans claims.

Sentence: Legislative Courts can hear cases that range from issues of the government to custom issues.

Question 17

Brief

Answer 17

A document containing the legal written arguments in a case filed with a court by a party prior to a hearing or trial.

Sentence: After going through a Brief, the case is argued orally.

Question 18

Precedent

Answer 18

A prior judicial decision that serves as a rule for setting subsequent cases of a similar nature.

Sentence: A precedent sets the standard for the future event.

Question 19

Stare decisis

Answer 19

In court rulings, a reliance on past decisions or precedents to formulate decisions in new cases.

Sentence: Stare decisis means “ let the decision stand” .

Question 20

Senatorial courtesy

Answer 20

A process by which presidents generally allow senators from the state in which a judicial vacancy occurs to block a nomination by simply registering their objection.

Sentence: A senatorial courtesy is generally considered a non-binding political custom.

Question 21

Sandra Day O’ Connor

Answer 21

An associate Justice of the supreme Court from 1981-2005 who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan as the first woman to serve on the Court.

Sentence: Sandra Day O’ Connor is part of the Republican Party.

Question 22

Elena Kagan

Answer 22

An Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, appointed by President Barack Obama in 2009 while she was serving as solicitor general in his administration.

Sentence: One of the past deans of the Harvard Law School was Elena Kagan.

Question 23

Writ of certiorari

Answer 23

A request for the Supreme Court to order up the records from lower court to review the case.

Sentence: One of the criteria that must be met for a Writ of certiorari, is that the case must come from a U.S. court of appeals, court of military appeals, district court, or a state court of last resort.

Question 24

Rule of four

Answer 24

At least four justices of the Supreme Court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard.

Sentence: In the Rule of error, the cases that are heard may be establish national policy standards.

Question 25

Solicitor general

Answer 25

The fourth- ranking member of the Department of Justice; responsible for handling nearly all appeals on behalf of the U.S. government to the Supreme Court.

Sentence: The Solicitor general is appointed by the President of the United States.

Question 26

amicus curiae

Answer 26

“Friend of the court”; amici may file briefs or even appear to argue their interests orally before the court.

Sentence: The participation of the amicus curiae has increased since the 1970s.

Question 27

Plurality Opinion

Answer 27

A type of judicial opinion, the reasoning of which is agreed to by fewer than a majority of judges on a court; although it resolves the particular case, the opinion does not establish a binding precedent.

Sentence: Plurality Opinion attracts the support of three or four justices.

Question 28

Concurring Opinion

Answer 28

A type of judicial opinion issued by a minority of judges on a court who agree with the outcome of a case, but wishes to express different legal reasoning.

Sentence: The Concurring Opinion is used to express the judge’s differing approach.

Question 29

Dissenting Opinion

Answer 29

A type of judicial opinion issued by a minority of judges on a court who disagree with the outcome of a case and wish to explain their legal reasoning.

Sentence: The Dissenting Opinion are opinions that have little direct legal value.

Question 30

Judicial restraint

Answer 30

A philosophy of judicial decision making that posits courts should allow the decisions of other branches of government to stand, even when they offend a judge’s own principles.

Sentence: Judicial Restraints defend their position by asserting that unelected judges make up the Federal Courts.

Question 31

Strict Constructionist

Answer 31

An approach to constitutional interpretation that emphasizes interpreting the constitution as it was originally written and intended by the Framers.

Sentence: Strict Constructionist argue that the Court should rely on the explicit meanings of the clauses in the document.

Question 32

Judicial implementation

Answer 32

How and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies affecting more than the immediate parties to a lawsuit.

Sentence: Judicial implementation involves implementing population.

Question 33

Original Jurisdiction

Answer 33

The jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial. These courts determine the facts of a case. In this case, “original” means where the case started out.

Sentence: The Supreme Court usually has a Original Jurisdiction in cases involving a conflict between two or more State Governments or Public Officials.

Question 34

Judicial Activism

Answer 34

Judicial activism refers to judicial rulings that are suspected of being based on personal opinion, rather than on existing law.

Sentence: Advocates of Judicial Activism usually agree that judges should be strict Constructionist.