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The U.S. Supreme Court

Explore the influences on case selection, decision-making, and constitutional interpretation by the U.S. Supreme Court. Learn about judicial philosophies and the role of judicial review in checking the power of other institutions and state governments.

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The U.S. Supreme Court

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  1. The U.S. Supreme Court Essential Question: What influences how the Supreme Court selects cases, decides cases, and interprets the Constitution?

  2. TEKS and Objectives I will… We will… Explain the function of the Supreme Court Outline how cases are argued and decided by the Supreme Court Identify different judicial philosophies and the role they play in Supreme Court decision making CON 5.B explain the principle of judicial review and how it checks the power of other institutions and state governments

  3. Function of the Supreme Court • Primary Function • Resolve disputes that arise over the meaning of federal law and the U.S. Constitution • Judicial Review • Court’s most important power • Power to examine laws and actions of all levels of government • Established by Marbury v. Madison in 1803

  4. Choosing Cases • Jurisdiction • SCOTUS has both original and appellate jurisdiction • Original Jurisdiction • Minor part of court’s workload • Set by Article III, Section 2 • Cases involving representatives of foreign governments • Certain cases in which a state is a party

  5. Choosing Cases • Appellate Jurisdiction • Make up most of the Court’s workload • Hears cases appealed from lower courts of appeal, federal district courts, or state supreme courts (if federal issue is involved)

  6. Choosing Cases • Types of Cases Chosen • Cases in which lower courts have decided same issue in different ways • Cases that raise major questions about the law that will have a national impact (i.e. abortion, privacy, death penalty)

  7. Choosing Cases • Petition for Writ of Certiorari • Losing party asks Supreme court to hear an appeal to a lower court’s decision • Court issues order to a lower court to send up the records on a case for review

  8. Choosing Cases • Rule of Four • Unwritten rule declaring that if four of the nine justices agree to hear a case, it will be scheduled for argument • Most cases are denied certiorari

  9. Checkpoint • What is the role of the Supreme Court in our democracy? • How does the court decide which cases to hear?

  10. Arguing Cases • Brief • Written statement setting forth legal arguments, relevant facts, and precedents submitted by each side • Amicus Curiae Briefs • Latin for “friend of the court” • Written brief from an individual or group claiming to have information useful to a court’s decision of a case

  11. Arguing Cases • Oral Argument • Hour-long argument (30 minutes per side) • Open to the public • Justices ask many tough questions

  12. Deciding Cases • Unanimous Ruling • Issued when the justices all agree on the outcome and the reasons for a decision of a case • Majority Opinion • States the decision of the court • Dissenting Opinion • Issued by judges who disagree with majority opinion

  13. Deciding Cases • Concurring Opinion • View expressed by justices who agree with the outcome, but not with all the reasoning

  14. Deciding Cases • Enforcing Decision • Supreme Court decisions become law • Lower courts expected to follow SCOTUS rulings • Executive branch must stop implementing laws declare “unconstitutional” • Court has no power to enforce decisions (i.e. Andrew Jackson’s removal of Cherokee)

  15. Checkpoint • Name the sequence of steps for cases heard at the Supreme Court. • What effects do Supreme Court decisions have?

  16. Interpreting the Constitution • Judicial Restraint • Philosophy that the Supreme Court should avoid overturning laws passed by democratically elected bodies (i.e. Congress, state legislatures) • Acts of Congress should be upheld unless they clearly violate the Constitution • Belief that overturning laws causes Court to become to involved in social and political issues

  17. Interpreting the Constitution • Judicial Activism • Belief that the Court must step in when Americans’ rights are violated • Court should play an active role in shaping national policies by addressing social and political issues

  18. Interpreting the Constitution • The Warren Court • SCOTUS under Chief Justice Earl Warren from 1953 to 1969 • Overturned many laws limiting rights of minorities (judicial activism)

  19. Interpreting the Constitution • Precedent and Stare Decisis • “let the decision stand” • Once a court rules on a case, decision serves a precedent for similar cases • Sometimes a justice argues against precedent when they believe original precedent was wrongly decided (i.e. separate but equal)

  20. Interpreting the Constitution • Originalism • Belief that the U.S. Constitution should be interpreted according to the intent of those who composed and adopted it • Gives a fixed, consistent meaning to the document • Change should be obtained through amendment process

  21. Interpreting the Constitution • “Living” Constitution • Concept that claims that the Constitution is dynamic and modern society should be considered when interpreting key constitutional text

  22. Checkpoint • What does judicial activism mean? • What does judicial restraint mean? • How doe judges decide what the Constitution means?

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