Chapter 8 Test

Question 1

Jurisdiction

Answer 1

Courts authority to hear and decide a case

Question 2

Original jurisdiction

Answer 2

Authority of a court to be the first court to hold trials in certain kinds of cases

Question 3

plantiff

Answer 3

person making the legal complaint, can file his or her case in a federal or state court

Question 4

defendant

Answer 4

person against whom the complaint is filed, can insist that the case be tried in federal court

Question 5

judicial restraint

Answer 5

concept that a judge should interpret the Constitution according to the Framer’s original intentions

Question 6

judicial activism

Answer 6

concept that the constitution should be interpreted more broadly, as an evolving document, something that subsequent generations can interpret consistent with changing values and circumstances

Question 7

precedent

Answer 7

an earlier court decision that guides judges’ decisions in later cases

Question 8

grand juries

Answer 8

panels of citizens set up to hear evidence of a possible crime and to recommend whether the evidence is sufficient to file criminal charges

Question 9

bankruptcy

Answer 9

legal process by which persons who cannot pay money they owe others can receive court protection and assistance in settling their financial problems

Question 10

misdemeanor

Answer 10

minor crime

Question 11

appellant

Answer 11

person who files an appeal

Question 12

public defender

Answer 12

lawyers appointed by the court to represent in criminal trials defendants who cannot afford to hire legal counsel

Question 13

briefs

Answer 13

written arguments filed by the parties in appeal

Question 14

writ of certiorari

Answer 14

order seeking review of a lower court case

Question 15

docket

Answer 15

list of cases to be heard

Question 16

majority opinion

Answer 16

signed by at least 5 of 9 members of the court

Question 17

concurring opinions

Answer 17

agree with the overall conclusion in the case but stress some different or additional legal reasoning

Question 18

dissenting opinions

Answer 18

held by minority of the justices who do not agree with the ruling in the case

Question 19

3 basic tasks of the American court system

Answer 19

1. ) Determine if a law has been broken and what penalties can be applied
2. ) Decide how to provide relief for those who have been harmed by the actions of another
3. ) Determine the meaning of a particular law or of the Constitution itself

Question 20

Three tier system in Federal Courts

Answer 20

1. ) District Courts- serve as trial courts (criminal cases, civil cases)
2. ) Courts of Appeals- originally referred to as appeal courts, no fixed location, Judiciary Act of 1891- circuit courts became strictly appellate courts (12 circuits)
3. ) Supreme Court- ultimate appellate court, ambassadors, public ministers, consults, 1 chief justice 8 associate judges

Question 21

Factors involving nominations for federal justices

Answer 21

legal expertise (use reports), party affiliation (Justice William O. Douglas chosen by President Roosevelt served 36 years), judicial philosophy (judicial restraint and activism), opinions of the senate (consulting with senators)

Question 22

Purpose of the Federal Court of Appeals

Answer 22

hear challenges to district court decisions from courts within its circuit, as well as appeals from decisions of federal agencies

Question 23

Appeals Court Procedure

Answer 23

appellant files an appeal, court reviews facts and precedent case, heard by three circuit judges, judges read briefs, may listen to oral arguments, judges make a decision

Question 24

marbury v madison

Answer 24

established for the first time that federal courts had the power to overturn an act of Congress on the ground that it violated the U.S. Constitution

Question 25

Plessy v Ferguson

Answer 25

upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine

Question 26

Supreme Court Procedure

Answer 26

selecting case, view briefs and arguments, discussions and opinions of the supreme court