Chapter Study OutlineIntroduction Show Courts serve the essential functions of arbitrating disputes in society and interpreting the Constitution and the laws. The American judiciary is an independent institution that also serves the separation of powers function of checking Congress and the president. Throughout American history, the judiciary has settled constitutional crises, helped protect the rights and liberties of the American people (including noncitizens), and helped promote the American economy by ensuring liberty. Although the Supreme Court’s constitutional powers are relatively meager, its authority emanates from its ability to interpret the Constitution and laws. Independent but inherently political, the American judiciary has expanded its agenda and its power throughout American history. 1. The Judicial Process What types of cases does the American judiciary hear and decide? How does it proceed and render its decisions?
2. The Organization of the Court System What types of courts constitute the federal judiciary? How are those various courts organized and what are their responsibilities? How are justices and judges selected?
3. How Courts Work as Political Institutions Treating judges as political actors and the judiciary as an important political institution, what functions do federal courts perform?
4. The Power of Judicial Review What is judicial review? How and when was it established? How frequently and in what way is it used in contemporary American politics?
5. The Supreme Court in Action What is the process by which cases reach the Supreme Court? How is the flow of cases determined? What procedures does the court employ to prepare, hear, and decide on cases?
6. Judicial Decision Making How does the Supreme Court make its decisions? How does it interact with Congress, the president, and the executive branch in the separation of powers framework? How might we consider these interactions as strategic behavior on the part of the Supreme Court?
7. The Expanding Power of the Judiciary How has the power of the judiciary changed over time? What are the traditional limitations on the federal courts? How did the courts seek to overcome these limitations in the twentieth century?
What power is given to the Supreme Court?Although the Supreme Court may hear an appeal on any question of law provided it has jurisdiction, it usually does not hold trials. Instead, the Court's task is to interpret the meaning of a law, to decide whether a law is relevant to a particular set of facts, or to rule on how a law should be applied.
What kind of power that is given to the courts under the Constitution?Section 2 of Article III gives the Supreme Court judicial power over “all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution”, meaning that the Supreme Court's main job is to decide if laws are constitutional.
Where are the powers of the Supreme Court found in the Constitution?Section 1. The judicial power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.
How does the Supreme Court perform its constitutional function?As the final arbiter of the law, the Court is charged with ensuring the American people the promise of equal justice under law and, thereby, also functions as guardian and interpreter of the Constitution.
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