Judicial review & PQ doctrine Flashcards
What are the two main reasons for something being labeled a political question?
- A textual commitment (constitution says so)
- Lack of judicially discoverable standard (no legal rule)
The rest are based on policy
What are the instences of political questions?
- Seating/Expulsion
- Amendment process
- Military matters
- The guarantee Clause
- Foreign affairs
- Politics
- Partisan gerrymandering
Why is the amendment process a political question?
- Art. V grants congress exclusive power
- Amendemnts are a check on the judiciary
How did Zivotofsky change the foreign affairs aspect of the political question doctrine?
“when there is a dispute between the branches it is less likely to be a political question.”
* federal courts determined that statute Americans born in Jerusalem were born in Isreal
Why is partisan Gerrymandering a political question?
There is no standard of fairness to decide how districts will be drawn
When race dominates a district then it is unconstitutional but not when party dominates
What is Judical review?
he power of a court to overtake actions by an elected official
What did Marbury v. Madison establish
SCOTUS can determin the constitutionallity of federal statutes even during the course of ordinary lawsuits
What is the counter-majoritarian difficulty
the power of the unelected judiciary to overturn the decisions of popularly elected officials or their appointees
What is Jurisdiction stripping?
A de facto change in substantiative law. Congress canges/restricts the Supreme courts jurisdiction.
A power granted by Art. 3
What happened in Ex Parte McCardle?
Congress repealed an 1867 act that allowed the Supreme Court to hear appeals for Habeas Corpus for detentions by state and local authorities. The Court was stripped of their jurisdiction to hear the case and rule on the Constitutionality of Military Reconstruction in the former Confederate states.
What are the essential roles of the SC that some commenters believe should never be destroyed by jurisdiction stripping?
- To ultimatly resolve inconsistant or conflicting interpretations of federal law
- To maintain the supremacy of federal law when it confliucts with state law
What are some of the substantive limitations on jurisdiction stripping?
- No constitutional violations
- Jurisdiction can’t tell a court how to decide a case, but can change the law that applies in that cae
- Habeas Corpus is given by the constitution no exceptions
What is an independant & adequate state ground?
a state-court decision with an independent and adequate state ground relies only on state law.
