Civics & Economics
The judicial branch is the branch of government given the power to study and interpret laws. At this point, many of us only recognize the Supreme Court as "the judicial" branch, but as we will see, there is so much more to the judicial branch than black robes and posing in front of a red curtain.
Judicial Branch: The Power to Study and Interpret the Law
Words to Know
jurisdiction -the authority to interpret and administer the law
original jurisdiction -the authority to hear a case first
appellate jurisdiction -the authority to hear an appeal.
A Two Court System
The United States has a two court system: a federal court and the individual state courts. Each system is organized according jurisdiction. Jurisdicition means the authority to interpret and administer the law. There are two types of jurisdiction in the court system: original jurisdiction and appellate jurisdiction.
Trial courts have original jurisdiction. Original jurisdiction is the authority to hear a case first. That means, that is where the court case starts. In the federal system, the United States District Court has original jurisdiction. In Virginia, district level courts and circuit courts have original jurisdiction.
Appellate jurisdiction is the authority to hear an appeal. If you lose your case in trial court, you still have the opportunity to file an appeal. Appeallate courts review lower courts' decisions to see if any errors were made during the trial. You might think of them as a referee. During an appeal, lawyers present their clients case to a panel of judges. This type of trial without a jury is called a bench trial. Again, the appeallate court's job is to make sure that there were no mistakes with the lower court's decisions.
United States Courts
Virginia Courts
Judicial Review: The Power of Interpretation
The United States court system is organized by the United States Constitution and other federal laws known as the United States Code. The Constitution and United States Code is also the source of the court's authority - rule of law.
Virginia, just like the other 49 states, has its own separate court system. Virginia's court system is organized by the Virginia Constitution and other state laws called the Code of Virginia.
Review Questions
How are federal courts organized, and what jurisdiction does each level of the court exercise?
How are state courts organized, and what jurisdiction does each exercise?
The United States Supreme Court is unique from other federal courts in that it has the power of judicial review. Judicial review is the power for the court to determine if a law passed by Congress or an action made by the President is Constitutional. If a law is determined to be agaisnt the Constitutional it is referred to as unconstitutional and the law is striked down.
The power of judicial review was established in the court case Marbury v. Madison in 1803. When the justices of the Supreme Court made their ruling on Marbury v. Madison, it established a precedent that has been followed ever since. A precedent is a court decision that acts as law for later court cases with similar cases. For the story of Marbury v. Madison be sure to watch the film below.
Words to Know
judicial review -the power to determine a law or action as unconstituional and as a result, overturn it
Marbury v. Madison -the court case that established judicial review
precedent - a court ruling that becomes a source for interpreting future cases
Remember, the United States Constitution is the supreme law of the land. That means that every state constitution and every state law must not violate it.
State constitutions operate the same way in that state laws must not violate that respective state's constitution.
Criminal Trials and Civil Trials
Due Process of Law
Review Questions
What is judicial review?
What was the significance of the court case Marbury v. Madison 1803?
Due process of law is the constituitonal protection against unfair government actions and laws. Due process was passed down through English legal heritage as far back as the Magna Carta (1215). It is based on the fundamental principle of rule of law that we learned about during the first nine weeks.
Due process is written in the United States Constitution in the 5th and 14th Amendments of the Bill of Rights and is referred to as the due process clause.
5th Amendment
The 5th Amendment prohibits the national government from acting in an unfair way.
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment prohibits state and local governments from acting in an unfair manner.
Supreme Court Rulings
While the due process clauses of the 5th and 14th Amendments protected American citizens from unfair government and actions, the Supreme Court has extended due process protection in several landmark cases which include:
Gideon v. Wainwright 1963
Miranda v. Arizona 1966
In re Gault 1967
