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Pearson Longman PoliticalScience Interactive. Shea, Green, and Smith Living Democracy, Second Edition Chapter 4: The Judiciary. The Adversarial System Judges serve as relatively passive and detached referees who do not argue with attorneys or challenge evidence. The Inquisitorial System
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Pearson LongmanPoliticalScienceInteractive Shea, Green, and Smith Living Democracy, Second Edition Chapter 4: The Judiciary
The Adversarial System Judges serve as relatively passive and detached referees who do not argue with attorneys or challenge evidence. The Inquisitorial System Judges take an active role in discovering and evaluating evidence, will question witnesses, and will intervene as deemed necessary. The Adversarial System
Court Structure and Processes Dual Court SystemSeparate systems of state and federal courts throughout the United States, each with responsibilities for its own laws and constitutions.
Criminal prosecutions and civil lawsuits Bench trials and jury trials Court Structure and Processes Trial Courts Appellate Courts • Hear appeals from judicial decisions and jury verdicts in the trial courts • Divided into eleven circuits
Court Structure and Processes Appellate Courts
Court Structure and Processes United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court is the final arbitrator for matters concerning federal laws and the U.S. Constitution.
Pathways Profile: Ruth Bader Ginsburg • Director of the Women’s Rights Project at the ACLU in the 1970s • As a lawyer, successfully argued to the Supreme Court to broaden the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection clause to include some types of gender discrimination
The Power of American Judges “The legitimacy of the Judicial Branch ultimately depends on its reputation for impartiality and nonpartisanship.” –Late Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun
Constitutional and Statutory Interpretation What constitutes “cruel and unusual” punishment? Whenever there are disputes about the meaning of the words and phrases in constitutions and statutes, judges are asked to provide interpretations that will settle the disputes.
The Court has only exercised its power of judicial review of presidential actions a handful of times since its inception. Marbury v. Madison (1803) Judicial Review Chief Justice John Marshall
Federal Judges’ Protected Tenure Federal judges can only be removed from office by impeachment by Congress if they commit a crime. How does this lack of accountability shape their decisions?
Judicial Selection The process of judicial selection is a highly partisan and political process.
Judicial Selection in the Federal System Because of the power wielded by the Supreme Court, presidents take a personal interest in selecting appointees. George W. Bush and Harriet Miers
Judicial Selection in the States • Partisan elections • Nonpartisan elections • Merit selection • Gubernatorial or legislative appointment Four methods of judicial selection
Judges’ Decision Making Case Precedent The body of prior judicial opinions, especially those from the U.S. Supreme Court and state supreme courts, that establishes the judge-made law that develops from interpretations of the U.S. Constitution, state constitutions, and statutes
Political Science and Judicial Decision Making Approaches to constitutional interpretation • Legal Model • Attitudinal model • Rational Choice • New institutionalism
Pathways Profile: John G. Roberts, Jr. • First nominated for a judgeship by George H. W. Bush but Senate did not vote on his nomination. • Nominated for second time after death of Rehnquist in 2005.
Interest Group Litigation Court-centered pathway • More attractive to smaller interest groups because it takes fewer resources. • Requires: • Litigation resources • Expertise • Patience
Pathways of Action: The NAACP and Racial Segregation • NAACP began litigation in the 1930s to end segregation. • Succeeded in 1964 with Brown v. Board of Education.
Elements of Strategy • Selection of Cases • Choice of Jurisdiction • Framing the Arguments • Public Relations and the Political Environment
Student Profile: Tyler Deveny • Challenged permitting prayers at public school graduations • Supported by ACLU
Implementation and Impact Courts cannot automatically ensure that their decisions are enforced and obeyed. The “Trail of Tears”
Judicial Policymaking and Democracy Although Alexander Hamilton expected the judiciary to be the weakest of the three branches, public policy can be shaped by the courts.
Pathways of Change From Around the World:Pakistan • President Pervez Musharraf attempts to remove chief Supreme Court justice. • Law students protest the interference with the independent judiciary.
