Post on 01-Aug-2018
transcript
Judicial Review
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Allows the courts to rule on the
constitutionality of laws or actions
All federal courts
Federal Court System
Step 1 – DISTRICT COURTS
94 US Dist. – Hear 342,000 cases/yr
Trial by jury (only federal court with jury)
Step 2 – APPEAL (CIRCUIT) COURTS
13 Courts of Appeal – Hear 61,000 cases/yr
Panel of 3 judges, sometimes more
No cases start here, review district court decisions
(IL, IN, and WI in the 7th circuit)
Federal Court System
Step 3 – US Supreme Court
2009 – Argued 84 cases, decided 71 (@8,000 reviewed)
Hear appeals – writ of certiorari
Rule of 4 – 4 justices needed to agree to hear a case
Chief Justice John Roberts
Types of Opinions
When an opinion is written (a decision), it often takes
months and many drafts
Majority Opinion – the decision of the court
Has the force of law; precedent for future cases
Concurring Opinion –
justices who agree for other reasons can give their
opinion
Dissenting Opinion –
justices who disagree with the opinion write their side
http://sunnylandsclassroom.org/Asset.aspx?Id=15
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Implementation
“John Marshall has rendered his decision;
now let him enforce it!” – Andrew Jackson
“All deliberate speed” – Chief Earl
Warren
10 years after Brown only 1% of
Southern schools were desegregated
Court must rely on other branches,
states, and officials to enforce its ruling
Public Influence on Justices
No:
not elected, appointed by Prez & serve for life
Yes:
Appointed by Prez, Prez was elected…judges
chosen because of prez bias
aware of public opinion
decisions that flagrantly go against public opinion
will not be implemented (Plessy v. Ferguson?)
Conservatism vs. Liberalism
Justices are supposed to be “above politics”
However, they do have personal ideologies
EX. – CJ Earl Warren (1953-69) and CJ
Warren Burger (1969-1986) were very
liberal
CJ William Rehnquist (1989-2005) and CJ
John Roberts (2005-?) swing conservative
Checks on the SC
President appoints all judges
Congress must confirm appointed judges
Congress may alter the structure of the court system (# of courts and justices)
Congress has the power to impeach judges
Congress may “rewrite” or amend statutory law
Congress may amend the Constitution if the Courts find a law unconstitutional
Ex. Income tax originally found unconstitutional so Congress added 16th amendment
Constraints on the Power of Federal Courts
1. Precedent & Stare Decisis
2. Adversarial system – decision must be made
between 2 choices, and court can’t bring up an
issue
3. Justiciable dispute – must judge actual situations,
not hypothetical situations
4. Political question – absence of law to rule on a
case and the court calls on the Congress to create
law
Ex. – gay marriage – equal protection?
Judicial and Political Philosophy
Liberal
Leans to the left on public policy
and would vote Democrat
Conservative
Leans to the right on public policy
and would vote Republican
Judicial Activism
Judges should interpret law loosely, using their power to
promote their preferred political and social goals. Judges are
said to be activists when they are likely to interject their own
values in court decision
Judicial Restraint
Legislators, not judges, should make the laws. Judges are said
to exercise judicial restraint when they rule closely to statutes
and previous cases when reaching their decisions. They follow
the “original intent” of the framers.
Freedom Order
Equality
Freedom