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American Government Chapter 8, Section 3: The Supreme Court

American Government Chapter 8, Section 3: The Supreme Court
Image result for supreme court building

Terms to Know:
Section 3: The Supreme Court:
  • The Supreme Court is the highest tribunal of the United States.
  • Since 1869, the Supreme Court has had eight associate justices in addition to the chief justice.
  • The Supreme Court possesses both original and appellate jurisdiction.
Judicial Review:
  • Judicial review is the right of the Court to declare a law, or action based upon that law, unconstitutional.
  • A writ of mandamus is a court order compelling a person to obey.
  • The power of judicial review gives the Supreme Court its most important tool in checking and balancing Congress and the President.
The Legal Road to the Supreme Court:
  • A writ of certiorari is Latin for a writ "made for certain"
  • The appellant is the person who appeals a case.
  • Discretionary review is the power to decide whether it will hear a case or not.
  • A petitioner is one who petitions a court to review the decision of a lower court.
The Court in Session:
  • An amicus curiae is filed by individuals who are not parties in the case but still have an interest in the case's outcome.
  • If the Court is split on a case, it issues a majority opinion.
  • If all justices agree on a case, the Court issues a unanimous opinion.
  • If a justice votes with the majority but wishes to explain his reasoning in a separate opinion, he may write a concurring opinion.
  • Any justice who does not vote with the majority on a case may write a dissenting opinion, explaining his reasons for disagreeing.
The Changing the Role of the Court:
  • Judicial activism is the belief that judges should go beyond the "four corners of the Constitution" and use the Constitution to change societal behavior.
  • The Warren Court took an active role in the legislative process, making law from the bench by interpreting the Constitution to mean what the justices wanted it to mean, rather than from a position of original understanding.
  • On January 22, 1973, in Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional a Texas law that had made elective abortions (deliberately killing unborn children) criminal offenses except when performed to protect's a woman's life or health.
  • Roe v. Wade ignored 3,500 years of Judeo-Christian civilization, religion, morality, and law.
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