THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM The judicial system is the branch of government comprising the state and federal courts

and the judges who preside over them. The judicial system in the United Sates is an adversarial one the courts provide an arena for two parties to bring their conflict before an impartial arbiter (judge) and jury. The system is based on the theory that justice will emerge out of the struggle between two contending points of view (in reality most cases are settled by agreements reached out of court) There are two basic kinds of cases: Criminal an individual is charged with violating a specific law Civil concerns a dispute between two parties Every case is a dispute between a plaintiff and a defendant the former bringing some charge against the latter. Litigants (the plaintiff and the defendant) must have standing to sue, which means they must have a serious interest in a case. In the case of a criminal trial the plaintiff is usually the state or federal government, or sometimes referred to as The People. For example in OJ Simpsons criminal trial, the plaintiff was The People, formally The People vs. Orenthal James Simpson. The criminal trial was held in a California State Court. In a civil trial, the plaintiff can be any two parties. Using the OJ Simpson case again as an example, the civil suits filed by the Goldman family were listed as: FREDRIC GOLDMAN, an individual, and KIMBERLY ERIN GOLDMAN, an individual Plaintiffs, vs. ORENTHAL JAMES SIMPSON, an individual The government can also be party to a civil suit. For example, the Securities and Exchange Commission is suing Goldman Sachs over misleading statements in a security offering. The case is listed as:
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, Plaintiff, v. GOLDMAN SACHS & CO. and FABRICE TOURRE, Defendants.

Common vs Code Law *Common law is made by judges who decide cases and articulate legal principles in their opinions. Common law is based on precedent and the facts of particular situation. It can be flexible as conditions and circumstances change. *Code law is laws created by legislators to regulate the behavior of individuals and organizations. Code law is typically very specific, for example speed limits are an example of a code law. The Constitution is vague about the federal court system: aside from specifying that there will be a Supreme Court, the Constitution left it to Congress discretion to establish lower federal courts of general jurisdiction. In addition to the Supreme Court, there are 13 federal courts of appeal, 94 federal district courts, and thousands of state and local courts. District courts are courts of original jurisdiction (cases start there), they are trial courts and can have a jury. U.S. courts of appeal have appellate jurisdiction (a case does not start here, but is appealed from a lower court); usually a case is heard by a panel consisting of three judges and decisions are made by a majority vote.

The landmark case Marbury v Madison (1803) established the power of judicial review, which allows the Court to strike down laws passed by the other branches that it views to be in conflict with the Constitution.

The highest court in the federal system is the U.S. Supreme Court having nine justices. This court is responsible for resolving conflicts among the states, maintaining national supremacy in the law and ensures uniformity in the interpretation of national laws. The Supreme Court has both original (decisions made by the Supreme Court may not be appealed) and appellate jurisdiction. Cases are appealed from the federal courts and the state courts. The president nominated persons to fill judicial posts, but the Senate must confirm each by majority vote. Federal judges are guaranteed the right to serve for life during good behavior. YOU NEED TO LOOK UP WHO IS CURRENTLY ON THE US SUPREME COURT! Over 8,000 cases are submitted yearly to the US Supreme Court, the court never hears over 150 cases. If four justices agree to grant review of a case (rule of four), it can be scheduled for oral argument. The court can also grant a writ of certiorari to a lower or federal court to send up a record of the case for review. The solicitor general argues the case on behalf of the United States and is the third ranking official in the Department of Justice. Judges are familiar with the case before they enter the courtroom having received briefs from each party. They may also have received briefs from parties who are interested in the outcome of the case but are not formal litigants (these are known as amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs) The written opinion is the legal reasoning behind the decision. Tradition requires that the chief justice if he voted with the majority assign the majority opinion to himself or another justice in the majority. Concurring opinions are those written to support a majority decision but also to stress a different constitutional or legal basis for the judgment. Dissenting opinions are those written by justices opposed to al or part of the majoritys decision. The vast majority of cases are settled on the principle of stare decisis (let the decision stand), meaning that an earlier decision should hold for the case being considered. All courts rely heavily upon precedent the way similar cases were handled in the past as a guide to current decisions. Important Supreme Court Decisions from the New York Public Library Desk Reference:
1803 Marbury v. Madison For the first time, the Supreme Court ruled an act of Congress unconstitutional, establishing the principle of judicial review. 1819 McCullock v. Maryland The Court's ruling upheld the constitutionality of the creation of the Bank of the United States and denied to the states the power to tax such an institution because, as Justice John Marshall put it, "the power to tax is the power to destroy." 1819 Trustees of Dartmouth College v. Woodward The Court ruled that a state could not arbitrarily alter the terms of a contract. Although this

case applied to a college, its implications widened in later years when the same principle was used to limit states' ability to interfere with business contracts. 1857 Dred Scott v. Sanford The Missouri Compromise was declared unconstitutional because it deprived a person of his property (a slave) without due process of law. This was only the second time that the Court had asserted the power of judicial review. The decision also stated that slaves are not citizens of any state or of the United States 1877 Munn v. Illinois States were allowed to regulate businesses when "a public interest" was involved. This principle was weakened by rulings in other cases in the late nineteenth century. 1895 U.S. v. E.C. Knight Co. In stating that manufacturing and commerce are not connected, and that the Sherman AntiTrust Act could not be applied to manufacturers, the Court seriously impaired the government's ability to regulate monopolies. 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson The Supreme Court ruled that state laws enforcing segregation by race are constitutional if accommodations are equal as well as separate. Subsequently overturned by Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. 1904 Northern Securities Co. v. U.S. The High Court backed government action against big businesses that restrained trade, in effect, putting teeth in the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. 1908 Muller v. Oregon The Court ruled that a state could legislate maximum working hours based on evidence complied by attorney Louis Brandeis. 1911 Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey Et Al. v. U.S. The Court dissolved the Standard Oil Trust not because of its size but because of its unreasonable restraint of trade. The principle involved is called "the rule of reason." 1919 Schenck v. U.S. The Court upheld the World War I Espionage Act. In a landmark decision dealing with free speech, Justice Oliver W. Holmes said that a person who encourages draft resistance during a war is a "clear and present danger." 1935 Schechter v. U.S. Invalidating the National Industrial Recovery Act of the New Deal, the Court declared that Congress could not delegate its powers to the President. 1951 Dennis Et Al. v. U.S. The Supreme Court ruled the 1946 Smit Act constitutional; the act made it a crime to advocate the overthrow of the government by force. In its 1957 Yates v. U.S. decision, the Court tempered this ruling by permitting such advocacy in the abstract if it is not connected to action to achieve this goal. 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka In an example of sociological jurisprudence, the Court held unconstitutional laws enforcing segragated schools; it called for desegregation of schools "with all deliberate speed." 1957 Roth v. U.S. The ruling based obscenity decisions on whether a publication appeals to "prurient interests." The Court also said that obscene material is that which lacks any "redeeming social importance."

1961 Mapp v. Ohio The High Court extended the federal exclusionary rule to the states; this rule prevented prosecutors from using illegally obtained evidence in a criminal trial. 1962 Baker v. Carr The Court held that state legislatures must be apportioned to provide equal protection under the law (Fourteenth Amendment). A follow-up decision applied the same principle to the size of congressional districts, insisting that they be approximately equal in population. 1966 Miranda v. Arizona The case declared that before questioning suspects, police must inform them of their right to remain silent, that any statements they make can be used against them, and that they have the right to remain silent until they have an attorney, which the state will provide if they cannot afford to pay. 1972 Furman v. Georgia The Court found unconstitutional all death penalty statues then in force in the states, but held out the possibility that if they were rewritten so as to be less subjective and randomly imposed, they might be constitutional (as the Court has subsequently held in many instances). 1973 Roe v. Wade The Court ruled state anti-abortion laws unconstitutional, except as they apply to the last trimester of pregnancy. 1978 University of California v. Bakke The ruling allowed a university to admit students on the basis of race if the school's aim is to combat discrimination. Subsequent decisions of the Court have filled in the details of how government and business may use quotas to make up for past racism. 1986 Bowers v. Hardwick In a case involving enforcement of Georgia's law against sodomy, the Court ruled that states have the power to regulate sexual relations in private between consenting adults.

The judicial system is the third leg of the checks and balances envisioned by the Framers of the Constitution. Its purpose is to resolve disputes and and prevent the other two branches of government from overstepping their Constitutional boundaries. An effective and functioning judicial system is important for any form of government, as society needs a fair way to resolve inevitable disputes that will arise and ensure that the treatment of its citizens is just.