Hierarchy and Sources of Law Flashcards
Federal SMJ (Limited)
Federal Question: US Constitution, federal laws, treaties
Federal Diversity of Citizenship: Cases where parties are citizens of different states and the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000
Complete Diversity
all plaintiffs must be citizens of different states than all defendants – there can be no overlap in state citizenship between any plaintiff and any defendant
Domicile
an individual’s citizenship is determined by their domicile (permanent home).
A person can only have one domicile at a time, even if they own multiple residences
Factors of Domicile
Physical Presence: The person must physically reside in the state
Intent to Remain: The person must intend to make that state their permanent home.
State Court SMJ
State courts can hear almost any kind of case including civil, criminal, family, probate, and contract disputes, unless a case falls under the exclusive jurisdiction of federal courts (like bankruptcy or federal criminal cases)
Concurrent Jurisdiction
State courts can hear cases involving federal law unless federal law grants exclusive jurisdiction to federal courts
Judicial Efficiency and Accessibility:
Allowing state courts to hear federal cases helps balance the workload between courts and increases access to justice for the public
No Exclusive Federal Jurisdiction
Only cases explicitly reserved for federal courts (bankruptcy, patents) are outside state courts’ jurisdiction
Filibuster
Action designed to prolong debate and delay or prevent a vote on a bill, resolution, amendment, or other debatable question
Filibuster Process
New bill introduced by Senator > Bill goes to committee > Bill moves to Senate for debate > Goes to senate floor
Filibuster - # of votes to pass
51 (simple majority)
Filibuster - # of votes to end debate and proceed to voting
60 votes (supermajority)
Silent Filibuster
When a group of 41 or more senators threatens a filibuster, the Senate majority leader can refuse to call a vote
Nuclear Option
Used to lower the vote threshold required to end debate on certain matters, such as judicial nominations or executive appointments, from the standard 60 votes to a simple majority of 51 votes
Primary Sources of Law
Mandatory/Binding Authority
