Jessie Hauser
Unit Six Key Terms
Appellate Jurisdiction- the power vested in an appellate court to review and/or revise the decision of a lower court
Senatorial Courtesy- process by which presidents, when selecting district court judges, defer to senators of their own party who represent the state where the vacancy occurs; also the process by which a governor, when selecting an appointee, defers to the state senator in whose district the nominee resides.
Writ of Certiorari- a request for the Court to order up the records from a lower court to review the case
Rule of Four- at least four justices of the Supreme Court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard
Solicitor General- the fourth-ranking member of the Department of Justice; responsible for handling all appeals on behalf of the U.S. government to the Supreme Court
Amicus Curiaie Brief- “friend of the court”; a third party to a lawsuit who files a legal brief for the purpose of raising additional points of view in an attempt to influence a court’s decision
Stare Decisis- “let it stand” or “stand by the decision” is a legal phrase referring to the obligation of courts to honor past precedents or ruling with whatever the lower court did
Judicial Restraint- a philosophy of judicial decision making that argues courts should allow the decisions of other branches of government to stand, even when they offend a judge’s own sense of principles
Judicial Activism-a philosophy of judicial decision making that argues judges should use their power broadly to further justice, especially in the areas of equality and personal liberty
Judicial Review- power of the courts to review acts of other branches of government and the states
Judiciary Act of 1789- established the basic three-tiered structure of the federal court system
Jurisdiction- authority vested in a particular court to hear and decide the issues in any particular case
Appellate Courts- courts that generally review only findings of law made by lower courts
Trial Courts- courts of original jurisdiction where a case begins
Original Jurisdiction- the jurisdiction of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial; courts determine the facts of a case under their original jurisdiction
Criminal Law- codes of behavior related to the protection of property and individual safety
Civil Law- codes of behavior related to business and contractual relationships between groups and individuals
Constitutional Courts- federal courts specifically created by the U.S. Constitution or by Congress pursuant to its authority in Article III
Legislative Courts- courts established by Congress for specialized purposes, such as the Court of Military Appeals
Brief- a document containing the legal written arguments in a case filed with a court by a party prior to a hearing or trial
Precedent- prior judicial decision that serves as a rule for settling subsequent cases of a similar nature
Strict Constructionist- believes that you should follow original intent of founders an approach to constitutional interpretation that emphasizes the Framers’ original intentions
Judicial Implementation- refers to how and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies affecting more than the immediate parties to a lawsuit