US Judiciary

Question 1

What is the role of the US supreme court?

Answer 1

-interprets constitution + applies the nation’s laws
-constitutional sovereignty gives SC huge power i.e rule on laws passed by congress, actions of executive etc
-highest court in federal judiciary and acts as final court of appeal for cases of constitutional importance
-asked to review more than 7,000 cases a year + agree to hear 100 to 150
- 1 chief justice + 8 associates

Question 2

Selection of SC justices: Presidential selection

Answer 2

-president can nominate justices after one dies, retires or is impeached(they have a life tenure)
-president’s team draws up a list of potential nominees with advice from political advisors + legal experts (normally share presidents ideologies: conservative/liberal) i.e Trump promised to choose nominees suggested by the Federalist society(conservative legal group) in 2016 campaign
-candidates are short-listed + background checked by lawyers and FBI i.e Justice Anthony Kennedy was interviewed by FBI for 10 hours and asked about many topics like treatment of animals
-many presidents then interview candidate before announcing them to public—} media scrutiny i.e Douglas Ginsburg’s past use of marijuana while being a law professor was surfaced when Reagan announced him in the 80s

Question 3

Selection of SC justices: Senate confirmation

Answer 3

-nominee is considered by senate judiciary committee—} must complete questionnaire on past experience and rulings(most come from fed court of appeals, 8 out of 9 of justices in 2021) BUT Elena Kagan was never a judge beofre appointment
-witnesses help the committee to assess their suitability + they have a televised interview
-SJC votes on the nominee(only a recommendation but it affects how easy to confirmation goes) i.e Ruth BG recieved unanimous vote before approval by 96-3 senators
-simple majority is sufficient i.e Clarence Thomas= 52-48 vote in Senate
-defeat at this stage is rare i.e last formally voted against nominee was in 1987

Question 4

What was the rule change for senate confirmation filibusters?

Answer 4

-presidential nominee historically needed 60/100 senator votes + rules allowed any senator to filibuster, with 60 votes needed for cloture
-Dem controlled senate changed the cloture rules in 2013–} introduced ‘nuclear option’ where cloture could be invoked with a simple majority
-rule change can make it easier for justices to be confirmed by just one party if it has a majority in senate i.e Amy Coney Barret was appointed by Republican controlled Senate without a single Dem vote in 2020

Question 5

Selection of SC justices: What happens once they are appointed?

Answer 5

-judges are completely independent + have fixed life terms
-cannot be removed from office for making a judgement the president dislikes
-i.e Bush appointed David Souter who then became a liberal member of the Court
-Ruth BG AND Stephen Breyer ruled that Clinton wasn’t immune to prosecution eventhough he appointed them

Question 6

Controversial nominations: Merrick Garland + Amy Coney Barret

Answer 6

-Obama nominated Garland in Mar 2016 but Rep-controlled Senate declared they wouldn’t consider it due to elections being in Nov
-In late Sept 2020, a vacancy opened up after Ruth BG’s death on election year + Trump nominated Amy Coney Barret to SC
-Republicans were eager to confirm her + Trump made it clear that his was to rule in his favour if he chose to appeal election result to SC (however when appointed, she refused to hear cases regarding 2020 election)

Question 7

Controversial nominations: Clarence Thomas + Brett Kavanaugh

Answer 7

-Clarence was appointed by Bush in 1991 + became the 2nd African American justice in history
-accusations of sexual harassment came out from former colleague Dr Anita Hill—} Thomas denied all charges + accused SJC for prejudice against black people(eventually confirmed with 11 Dem supporters and all but 2 Reps)
-Trump’s nomination of Brett in 2018 was threatened by accusation of sexual misconduct after Dr Ford gave testimony from when she was 15 and he was 17–} Trump mocked her, which led to capitol Hill demonstrations to ‘#believewomen’
-confirmed with all but 1 Rep vote and only 1 Dem vote(controversial as he had been nominated to fill a swing seat)

Question 8

The US selection process IS fit for purpose?

Answer 8

-SJC members are experts in judicial matters + undertaken detailed scrutiny of candidates i.e televised hearing on Brett brought Dr Ford’s accusations to light in 2018
-Senate confirmation acts as check on executive(oversight) i.e FBI interviews beforehand
-Justices are independent once appointed and can take any stance freely i.e David Souter
-Court has a broad range of conservative and liberal justices to represent different legal approaches i.e Sotomayor voted for same-sex marriage on Obergefell v Hodges but John Roberts voted against

Question 9

The US selection process IS NOT fit for purpose

Answer 9

-justices may be selected for their stance rather than judicial excellence i.e Trump appointing Coney Barret
-weak scrutiny if Senate is held by president’s party i.e Kavanaugh
-Senate’s role weakens power of executive i.e Rep senate refusing to hold hearings for Garland violated president’s right to appoint a justice
-too political as pressure groups spend millions campaigning for nominees i.e Judicial Crisis Network spend over 10 million to support Kavanaugh’s nomination

Question 10

Examples of justices in the Supreme Court

Answer 10

• John Roberts(2005): appointed by Bush(R), Chief Justice, wrote the majority opinion that shot down challenge to Obama’s Medicare
• Neil Gorsuch(2017): appointed by Trump(R), youngest justice for 25 years, conservative view i.e supported Trump’s travel ban
• Ketanji Brown Jackson(2022): appointed by Biden(D), first black woman to sit on the court
• Sonia Sotomayor(2009): appointed by Obama(D), first hispanic justice, most public facing i.e appeared on Sesame street

Question 11

Partisan balance on political issues

Answer 11

-political issues are often divisive in SC so the court has a ‘swing voter’—} Anthony Kennedy(1988-2018) was appointed by Reagan(R) and frequently made conservative judgments i.e voted with majority opinion in DC of Columbia v Heller to protect 2nd amendment gun rights in DC BUT wrote the majority opinion for Obergefell v Hodges(2015) to legalise same sex marriage
-may depend on the swing voter
—}Kavanaugh is more conservative i.e voted 5-4 that partisan gerrymandering was not unconstitutional

Question 12

Partisan balance on legal issues

Answer 12

-many rulings focus on the technical legal interpretation rather than political, which leads to more unanimous decisions
-from 2018-19, less than half of the 5-4 splits have been clear cut conservatives vs liberals + in this time every conservative justice voted with liberals at some in a 5-4 ruling
-5-4 conservative majority Court also made decisions against Trump i.e overruling his attempt to end the deferred action for childhood arrivals(DACA) programme in 2020

Question 13

Diversity in the supreme court

Answer 13

-5 women have sat on court in its history(4 in 2024 court: Sotomayor, Coney Barret, Brown Jackson, Kagan)
-3 African Americans have sat on the court in its history(2 in 2024: Thomas and Brown Jackson), Thurgood Marshall(1967-91)
-Sonia Sotomayor is the first and only Hispanic justice on the court

Question 14

What are the 2 constitutional roles of the supreme court?

Answer 14

-interpreting the constitution
-protecting citizens’ rights

Question 15

interpreting the constitution: Strict constructionism

Answer 15

-states that the constitution should be interpreted strictly according to what it says —} it is a precise legal doc that can only be updated/changed
-can only be amended formally(supermajorities in both houses and 3/4 state legislatives)
-tend to make conservative judgements

Question 16

Originalists

Answer 16

-closely associated with strict constructionists
-believe that the language in the constitution should be interpreted in the way the framers intended, even if that is outdated
-Republican presidents aim to appoint strict constructionist/originalist justices i.e Clarence Thomas(originalist) is the longest serving justice and Trump appointed 3 originalists(Kavanaugh, Gorsuch and Coney Barret)

Question 17

Interpreting the constitution: Loose constructionism

Answer 17

-interpreted according to a modern context + the interpretation should be allowed to evolve over time
-Ruth BG favoured the idea of a living constitution where it should be interpreted to suit the changing needs of society over time

Question 18

Interpreting the constitution: middle ground

Answer 18

-not all justices neatly identify as strict or loose constructionist
-liberal justice Sotomayor suggested that the decision making process is more complex
-Chief Justice Roberts said that justices should follow the approach most suited to the situation

Question 19

How does the supreme court protect citizens’ rights?

Answer 19

-it is the ultimate court of appeal, so it can strike down federal/state law to protect rights
-can rule acts as unconstitutional

Question 20

Example of protecting rights: First Amendment

Answer 20

• freedom of religion
-Burrell v Hobby Lobby stores(2014)= court struck down part of the ACA 2010 that made family-run businesses contribute to health insurance that mat be used for contraception

Question 21

Example of protecting rights: Second Amendment

Answer 21

• right to bear arms
-DC of Columbia v Heller(2008) saw the court strike down a law banning handgun ownership in Washington DC

Question 22

Example of protecting rights: First amendment

Answer 22

• freedom of speech
-Citizens united v FEC(2010) ruled that corporations could make political donations and ads the same as individuals, as they have the same rights to free speech as individuals

Question 23

What are landmark rulings?

Answer 23

-a decision by the Supreme Court that establishes a new legal principle or changes the way a law is interpreted

Question 24

Brown v Topeka Board of education(1954)

Answer 24

-13 African American parents from Topeka represented by Thurgood Marshall took aboard to court after their children were denied access to all white school
-supported by NAACP(national association for the advanced of coloured people)
-Marshall requested Plessy v Ferguson(1896) to be reconsidered(segregation laws i.e Jim crow laws in the south)
-SC ruled that the doctrine ‘separate but equal’ was fundamentally unequal + violated 14th amendment(right to equal protection)

Question 25

Significance of Brown v Topeka

Answer 25

-it was seen as an attack on state rights by federal SC in the south
-led to confrontation when Arkansas state governor supported a high school’s decision not to admit 9 AA students—} Eisenhower eventually ordered federal troops to sector them to school
-victory for growing civil rights groups i.e NAACP
-product of an activist court led by Chief Justice Earl Warren

Question 26

Obergefell v Hodges(2015)

Answer 26

-Obergefell married his husband in Maryland where same sex marriage was legal but they weren’t recognised as married in Ohio
-his case in SC was considered alongside similar cases in Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee
-judgment focused on ‘equal protection’(14th)
-court ruled 5-4 which legalised same sex marriage

Question 27

Significance of Obergefell v Hodges

Answer 27

-majority of justices took a loose constructionist approach
-fundamental law changed by unelected body
-dissenting justices argued that the ‘right to religious freedom’ was being infringed

Question 28

Roe v Wade(1973)

Answer 28

-McCorvey(alias Jane Roe) was pregnant in Texas where abortion was illegal(she gave it up for adoption)
-2 young women lawyers took on her case
-SC ruled 7-2 that women has an unrestricted right to abortion in the 1st trimester—} Court found that 14th amendment’s mention of life, liberty and property implied a right to privacy

Question 29

Significance of Roe v Wade

Answer 29

-landmark for women’s movement, gave them a constitutional right to personal choice about their bodies
-divisive issue—} Democrats lent more to pro-choice and Republicans to pro-life
-conservatives criticised unelected justices for ‘legislating from the bench’ as the ruling had the same effect as passing a law to legalise abortion

Question 30

Other abortion cases

Answer 30

-Planned parenthood v Casey(1992)= court accepted the right of states to regulate abortion in the early stages of pregnancy (1st trimmer was no longer unrestricted)
-Gonzales v Carhart(2007)= upheld the partial-birth abortion ban act 2003(abortion in late term pregnancies where part of the foetus is extracted) + did not make exception for health of the mother
-Whole Woman’s Health v Hellerstedt(2016)= court ruled that TRAP laws(targeted regulation of abortion providers i.e width of the medical facility etc) placed an ‘undue burden’ on women—} all 3 women justices at the time(RBG, Kagan and Sotomayor) voted with the majority

Question 31

What was the impact of Trump’s conservative court?

Answer 31

-after Trump appointing Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, the court had a conservative majority
-gave space for state legislatures with conservative majorities to pass laws in 2019 that restricted abortions i.e ‘heartbeat bills’(banned abortion from when a foetal heartbeat is found at around 6-7 weeks) and a near-total ban on all abortions in Alabama–} laws were blocked by federal courts for violating Roe v Wade but then appealed by states
-campaign to remove federal abortion rights had support from over 200 members of congress who signed an amicus curiae brief(written info about case submitted to court by outside party)

Question 32

What is the supreme court’s power of judicial review?

Answer 32

-it can declare both the actions of the executive branch and legislatures unconstitutional
-established by the SC in an Act of Congress in 1803, Marbury v Madison to protect civil rights + liberties from infringement
-the only way for congress + executive to overrule court’s decision is to formally amend the constitution, which rarely happens(2/3 majority in both houses of congress and 3/4 state legislatures)

Question 33

Examples of how judicial review increase the supreme court’s significance?

Answer 33

-the court could rule that foreign nationals detained as terrorist suspects by Bush’s admin had a right to challenge their detention in federal courts in Boumediene v Bush (2008)
-US v Texas(2016) struck down Obama’s executive order giving an indefinite delay in deportation to around 3 million illegal immigrants

Question 34

Political significance of the Court: political appointees

Answer 34

-the balance of court is watched very closely i.e Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s medical news repeatedly making headlines for years before her death in 2020
-conservative-liberal balance represents nature of how the constitution will be interpreted

Question 35

Political significance of the Court: controversial rulings

Answer 35

-landmark rulings have led to politically significant changes to law i.e Roe v Wade(1973) ruled that women have a constitutional right to an abortion, Obergefell v Hodges(2015) legalised same-sex marriage
-court has also intervened in the electoral process i.e ruled in Bush v Gore(2000) that a recount of Florida’s ECVs within the timeframe set in Florida was unconstitutional(all conservative judges voted in favour of Bush–} Bush won with 271-266 ECVs

Question 36

Political significance of the Court: Quasi-legislative body

Answer 36

-critics have labelled the supreme court as this and argue that it has moved beyond its constitutional role of interpreting law
-strict constructionist argue that the constitution nor its framers mentioned abortion + same-sex marriage so it is not within the court’s role–} accused of ‘legislating from the bench’

Question 37

Political significance of the Court: Judicial restraint

Answer 37

-judges take a deferential attitude to the other branches of govt as they are elected–} rarely overturn their actions/laws
-upholds the principle of stare decisis(to ‘stand things decided’ by following legal precedent)
+ respect previous SC’s decisions

Question 38

Political significance of the Court: Judicial activism

Answer 38

-making judgements in order to improve society–} normally believe in a living constitution and make progressive rulings to modernise rights
-i.e Chief Justice Earl Warren was said to be leading an ‘activist court’ in Brown v Topeka(1954–} chaired private discussions between justices + convinced them to give a unanimous ruling

Question 39

Political significance of the Court: Federalism

Answer 39

-frequently made judgements that overruled state laws i.e DC v Heller(2008) ruled that a DC law banning handguns was unconstitutional as the right to bear arms cannot be overruled by state legislatures + Roe v Wade(1973) which weakened restrictions previously made in certain states
-has also defended state’s rights i.e struck down a law passed by congress in 1992 that prohibited states from authorising sports gambling in Murphy v National Collegiate(2018)

Question 40

The Supreme Court IS too political

Answer 40

-they rule on landmark political issues despite no mandate i.e Roe v Wade, Obergefell v Hodges
-nomination + confirmation process is highly politicised i.e Amy Coney Barrett
-intervene in the electoral system i.e Bush v Gore(2000)
-have an impact on federalism i.e Murphy v National Collegiate 2018

Question 41

The Supreme Court IS NOT too political

Answer 41

-independent despite the politicised nomination process i.e RBG and Stephen Brayer ruled that Clinton wasn’t immune to prosecution
-some justices do not consistently vote the same way i.e Anthony Kennedy was a ‘swing vote’
-judicial activism is sometimes necessary i.e Brown v Topeka(1954)
-congress can check supreme court by initiating a constitutional amendment to overturn the court’s decision