Judicial Branch Flashcards
District Courts- what type of jurisdiction?
Original jurisdiction- trial cases
How many district courts?
94- at least one in each state
courts of appeals (appellate courts)
federal courts that hear appeals from district courts; no trials
judicial review
power of courts to declare laws unconstitutional
how many appellate courts?
12- geographically based plus the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (13)
what can appellate courts do?
- deny request to review case
- affirm district court decision (most likely)
- reverse decision
- remand decision (send it back to district courts telling them what to do)
what is appellate jurisdiction?
when cases are reviewed from the district courts to make sure the law was applied correctly
who uses appellate jurisdiction? what about original jurisdiction?
supreme court & appellate courts- appellate
supreme court & district courts- original
examples of criminal law
theft, murder, violence (can be imprisoned for committing)
examples of civil law
disputes between people, contracts, business relations, etc. (can never be imprisoned)
difference between jail & prison
- jail is run by local officials, people are sent to jail for misdemeanors (typically less than a year)
- prison is run by the state, people are charged with a felony (1 year- lifetime sentence w/o parole)
judical discretion
when judges look at facts and use their own judgment to make decisions (aka why people charged for the same crime can be given different sentences)
Court Structure (MI)
1) State Supreme Court
2) State Appeals Courts (appeals from lower cases)
3) Circuit Court (highest trail court in the state, all felonies, all civil cases/misdemeanors > $25,000
4) District Courts (all misdemeanors, civil cases < $25,000)
5) Probate Courts (family matters, wills, estates)
English Common Law System aspects (2)
1) states have different laws
2) case law (decisions made by judges become precedents which become laws; precedent can be changed/law can be changed)
