judicial quiz Flashcards
what trend is there when president’s choose their nominee
they do it based on their ideology and party
democrats = more liberal and diverse
republican = more conservative and strict
most common background for judicial nominees
working as lawyer, in judicial system
9 justices in the Court
Barrett
kavanaugh
brown-jackson
Thomas
alito
Kagan
Roberts
Sotomayor
Gorsuch
religion of court members
1 Jewish, 6 catholics, 2 protestants
do courts decide more cases 5 to 4 or 9 to 0
9 to 0
media makes it seem more like 5 to 4
how many cases appealed to the Supreme Court each year
6000-8000
what percent are accepted for the cases to the Supreme Court
1%
When the Supreme Court decides not to hear a case (denies certiorari) it is saying that it agrees with the lower court’s opinion and that the lower court decision should become a precedent.
False
it should be handled with lower courts and with appellate
do Supreme Courts accept cases more from federal or state cases?
federal courts
federal laws trumps state laws
constitutional subjects
when do cases go to Supreme Court
when the appellate courts disagree
which justice didn’t have any prior judicial experience before joining Supreme Court
Kagan
worked as top lawyer under Obama
A vacancy on the Supreme Court has occurred about once every two years, so a president will probably have at least one appointment during his term.
true
The current justices get to vote on who will fill a vacancy.
false
The appointment to Chief Justice automatically goes to the senior most justice on the court.
false
president can pick among other 8 or president can nominate new person chief judge and chief justice
Supreme Court nominees always have previous judicial experience.
false
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court.
true
Justices are obligated to rule according to the ideology of the president who appointed them.
false
There was a former president who also served as Chief Justice of the United States.
true
William Taft
The president has final word on whether a nominee will be confirmed.
false
Today geographical balance (where a nominee is from) is also important when selecting a nominee.
false
You meet the Constitutional requirements for a Supreme Court justice.
true
life tenture is supported by
good behavior of the judges
3 main parts of Fed 78
independent judiciary
life tenure
judicial review
can the judicial branch enforce their own rulings?
no
which court case establish judicial review
marybury v madison
two types of cases
criminal law
civil law
criminal law
the government charges an individual with violating one or more specific laws
civil laws
the court resolves a dispute between two parties and defines the relationship between them
litigants
engage in legal proceeding
plaintiff
the party bringing the charge and have standing to sue
defendant
the party being charged
jury
the people (12) who often decide the outcome of case
standing to sue
plaintiffs have a serious interest in the case
judiciable disputes
a case must be capable of being settled as a matter of law
class action lawsuits
exception where a large group of people who’ve been wronged hire someone to sue for them
dual court system - state
local court then
state appeals court then
state supreme court
then
US Supreme court
dual court system - national
federal district court then
federal appeals court then
US Supreme Court
how many district courts
94
hear federal crimes and civil suits under federal law and across state laws
doesn’t do appeals
original jurisdiction
courts that hear the case first and determines the facts - the trial court
how many circuit courts of appeals
12
13th is in DC - federal court
holds no trial and hear no testimoney
reviews and enforces independent regulatory orders
which cases does the supreme court have original jurisdiction over
between the US and a state
between two or more states
between one state and citizens of other state
between a state and a foreign country
how to be a judge
FBI conducts background check on nominee
interest groups lobby for and against certain nominations
must go through judiciary committee (holds hearings, grills on their philosophy, dissects their past)
how is chief justice chosen
from a sitting justice or a new member
judicial restraint
strict constructionist
judges should play a minimal policymaking role
leave the policies to the legislative and avoid sweeping, precedent setting opinions
judicial activism
loose constructionist
judges should make bold policy decisions and even charting new constitutional ground
protect minorities who are politically weak
judicial review
the power of the court to rule on the constitutionality of laws, acts, statutes, executive orders
who is chief justice
John Roberts
what do justices rely heavily on
law clerk briefs
to make decision of which case to hear
rule of 4
4 justices agree to hear a case
prevents tyranny of majority
write of certiorari
after the rule of 4
supreme court tells lower courts to send them all the records
they review all the information for case
how long does each side get
30 minutes
paid petitions
best way to let a case be considered by supreme court
$300 filing fee
20% of petitions
3-4% granted
in forma pauperis
litigants who can’t pay fee (prisoners)
80% of petitions
0.2% granted
ranking of petitions heard
US government
corporations
states
organized groups
individuals
cert pool (in pool)
all justices but alito
32 law clerks read 8000 petitions total
each clerk reads and writes a memo on 250 per year
cert pool (not in pool)
alito
4 law clerks
read 8000 petitions total with each clerk reading 2000
advanatages of pool
saves time
consideration of each petition
shares to others to mark up and give input
disadvanatages of pool
reduces independence if 8 justices are relying on one writer for each memo
clerks are a year out of law school (too much responsibility)
dissenting opinion
minority opinion
disagree with the opinion written
concurring opinion
justices who agree with the majority opinion but for different reasons
majority opinion
opinion of the court
reasoning and decision of case
unanimous opinion
all judges agree
stare decisis
to let the previous decisions stand unchaged
follow precedent
advanatages of stare decisis
don’t uproot what’s been done
make laws and decisions predictable
make decisions easier
disadvanatages of stare decisis
time changes
why let the judges decide (they aren’t even elected)
