Chapter 3 - The Legal System in the US

Question 1

four sources of law

Answer 1

a reference to the four sources of law in American society: constitutions (state and federal), statutes (federal, state, and local), administrative law, common law (court decisions)

Question 2

constitutional law

Answer 2

the body of law that deals with the fundamental principles that determine how a government is run

Question 3

three branches of the federal government

Answer 3

a legislative branch that creates laws, an executive branch that enforces them, and a judicial branch that interprets the laws

Question 4

legislative branch of the USA

Answer 4

the US House of Representatives and the US Senate

Question 5

executive branch of the USA

Answer 5

federal level: the president and his staff, which are mainly cabinet-level agencies such as the CMS; state level: the governor

Question 6

judicial branch of the USA

Answer 6

the federal and state court systems; the highest in each state is that state’s supreme court; the highest in the nation is the federal Supreme Court

Question 7

constitution

Answer 7

a document that forms the basis of constitutional law; states have their own constitution but the highest constitution in the USA is the US Constitution

Question 8

due process of law

Answer 8

the legal requirement that the state must respect all legal rights that are owed to a person

Question 9

state action

Answer 9

an action that is either taken directly by the state or that bears a sufficient connection to the state to be attributed to it

Question 10

substantive due process

Answer 10

due process that protects individuals’ legal rights and guarantees that laws are fair, reasonable, and not arbitrary

Question 11

procedural due process

Answer 11

due process that requires that government not take a person’s life, liberty, or property without due process of law; it is about making sure there are fair legal processes and procedures

Question 12

statutory law

Answer 12

written laws (statutes) passed by the legislative branch of the United States or by an individual state

Question 13

administrative law

Answer 13

the body of law that governs the administration and regulation of government agencies (both federal and state)

Question 14

administrative agency tribunal

Answer 14

a type of court within an agency, distinct from the actual court system; they often resolve issues before they become serious enough to go to the courts

Question 15

CFR

Answer 15

acronym for Code of Federal Regulations; it is a list of regulations developed by federal administrative agencies

Question 16

common law

Answer 16

also called judicial law or case law; in the context of the US legal system, it refers to making decisions based on precedents established by previous court decisions

Question 17

stare decisis

Answer 17

a Latin term that means “let the decision stand”; it means to make decisions based on precedent; however, it is not universal: lower courts must look to precedents established by higher courts; higher courts do not need to consider precedents established by lower courts; courts of the same level do not need to take precedent from each other; state courts do not need to follow precedents established by courts in other states

Question 18

persuasive authority

Answer 18

cases, statutes, regulations, or secondary sources that the court may follow but does not have to follow

Question 19

conflict of laws

Answer 19

an inconsistency between the laws of different states arising from a legal action that involves more than one jurisdiction (e.g. a malpractice lawsuit that involves multiple jurisdictions)

Question 20

jurisdiction

Answer 20

a territory of legal control

Question 21

Supremacy Clause

Answer 21

a clause in the US Constitution that states that federal laws override any conflicting state law

Question 22

res judicata

Answer 22

Latin for “a matter already judged”; a legal doctrine that prevents subsequent lawsuits about a matter already decided on and that involves the same parties once a decision has been made and all appeals have been exhausted

Question 23

separation of powers

Answer 23

a doctrine that limits the authority of each branch of the government and that inhibits any one branch of government from becoming autocratic

Question 24

trial courts

Answer 24

the lowest tier of state courts, divided into two types: courts of limited jurisdiction and courts of general jurisdiction

Question 25

court of limited jurisdiction

Answer 25

state courts that hear cases that pertain to a particular subject matter (e.g. landlord and tenant cases or juvenile cases), crimes of lesser severity (e.g. misdemeanors), or civil matters of lesser dollar amounts

Question 26

court of general jurisdiction

Answer 26

state courts that hear more serious criminal cases (e.g. felonies), or civil cases that involve large amounts of money

Question 27

plaintiff

Answer 27

a person who brings a case against another in a court of law (used in civil cases)

Question 28

prosecutor

Answer 28

a person, especially a public official, who institutes legal proceedings against someone (used in criminal cases)

Question 29

defendant

Answer 29

an individual, company, or institution sued or accused in a court of law

Question 30

appellate court

Answer 30

courts that hear appeals on final judgments made in state trial courts

Question 31

supreme court

Answer 31

the highest tier of court in a state or in the country (in the case of the U.S. Supreme Court); it hears appeals from lower courts

Question 32

brief

Answer 32

a legal document that argues for a particular side, prepared by each party’s attorney

Question 33

oral argument

Answer 33

oral presentation of a party’s position and the reasoning behind it, usually before an appellate court

Question 34

opinion

Answer 34

a written explanation by a judge or group of judges that accompanies an order or ruling in a case, laying out the rationale and legal principles for the ruling

Question 35

district court

Answer 35

a trial court that is part of the federal court system

Question 36

circuit court

Answer 36

an appellate court that is part of the federal court system

Question 37

petition for writ of certiorari

Answer 37

the process by which a party submits a request for the Supreme Court to hear a case

Question 38

subject matter jurisdiction

Answer 38

the authority of a court to hear cases of a particular type or cases relating to a specific subject matter. (e.g. bankruptcy court only has the authority to hear bankruptcy cases)

Question 39

court of special jurisdiction

Answer 39

a court that has the power to handle certain cases that are specified by law

Question 40

diversity jurisdiction

Answer 40

a form of subject matter jurisdiction that gives U.S. federal courts the power to hear lawsuits that do not involve federal law; generally speaking, diversity jurisdiction requires two conditions to be met: (1) the plaintiff and defendant must be from separate states; (2) the amount in question must be at least $75,000

Question 41

Court of Claims

Answer 41

a court where lawsuits against the government are brought; can be state or federal

Question 42

Conditions of Participation

Answer 42

rules that healthcare organizations are required to follow in order to receive Medicare and Medicaid certification

Question 43

HFAP

Answer 43

acronym for: Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program; a non-profit organization meant to help healthcare organizations maintain their standards in patient care and comply with regulations and the healthcare environment

Question 44

DNV GL Healthcare

Answer 44

an organization that provides accreditation and clinical excellence certifications to America’s hospitals

Question 45

CIHQ

Answer 45

acronym for: Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality; accreditation provider approved by CMS to determine if acute care hospitals are meeting Medicare’s Conditions of Participation

Question 46

acute care

Answer 46

a branch of secondary health care where a patient receives active but short-term treatment for a severe injury or episode of illness, an urgent medical condition, or during recovery from surgery (e.g. emergency room)

Question 47

chronic care

Answer 47

also called long-term care; a variety of services which help meet both the medical and non-medical needs of people with a chronic illness or disability who cannot care for themselves for long periods

Question 48

primary care

Answer 48

the day-to-day healthcare given by a health care provider. Typically this provider acts as the first contact and principal point of continuing care for patients within a healthcare system, and coordinates other specialist care that the patient may need (e.g. Dr. Dinh, the general dentist at Emergency Dental)

Question 49

secondary care

Answer 49

medical care that is provided by a specialist or facility upon referral by a primary care physician and that requires more specialized knowledge, skill, or equipment than the primary care physician can provide (e.g. the sleep study referral given by Fourth Street Clinic, the endodontist after the failed root canal)

Question 50

tertiary care

Answer 50

highly specialized medical care usually over an extended period of time that involves advanced and complex procedures and treatments performed by medical specialists in state-of-the-art facilities (e.g. my hospitalization after breaking my femur)

Question 51

alternative dispute resolution

Answer 51

a system, promoted by the US legal system, that provides means to settle disputes that do not involve the court system; the two main types of dispute resolution are arbitration and mediation; the main benefits are privacy, time saved, and money saved

Question 52

arbitration

Answer 52

a dispute that is submitted to a third party or a panel of experts outside the judicial system; this process is most effective when the parties to the dispute agree to have their differences settled by the arbitrator and agree that the settlement will be binding

Question 53

mediation

Answer 53

a dispute that is submitted to a third party; however, the outcome of mediation occurs by agreement of the parties, and not by a decision of the mediator

Question 54

state medical board

Answer 54

government entities that take action against physicians for behaviors that are illegal or reckless; they do other things as well