Federal district

(noun)

A term that commonly refers to the Washington DC.

Related Terms

Examples of Federal district in the following topics:

  • Federal Jurisdiction

    • The American legal system includes both state courts and federal courts.
    • Generally, state courts hear cases involving state law, although they may also hear cases involving federal law so long as the federal law in question does not grant exclusive jurisdiction to federal courts.
    • Federal courts may only hear cases where federal jurisdiction can be established.
    • The Federal Courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, meaning that they can only exercise the powers that are granted to them by the Constitution and federal laws.
    • The federal district courts represent one of the ways federal jurisdiction is split.

  • Basic Judicial Requirements

    • For most of these cases, the jurisdiction of the federal district courts is concurrent with that of the state courts.
    • In other words, a plaintiff can choose to bring these cases in either a federal district court or a state court.
    • Patent and copyright infringement disputes and prosecutions for federal crimes, the jurisdiction of the district courts is exclusive of that of the state courts.
    • Several district courts require attorneys seeking admission to their bars to take an additional bar examination on federal law, including the following: the Southern District of Ohio, the Northern District of Florida, and the District of Puerto Rico.
    • Generally, a final ruling by a district court in either a civil or a criminal case can be appealed to the United States court of appeals in the federal judicial circuit in which the district court is located, except that some district court rulings involving patents and certain other specialized matters must be appealed instead to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and in a very few cases the appeal may be taken directly to the United States Supreme Court.

  • U.S. District Courts

    • The United States district courts are the trial courts within the U.S. federal court system.
    • With the exception of the territorial courts in Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands, federal district judges are appointed for life.
    • While district courts are the primary trial courts within the U.S., two special trial courts exist outside of the district court system.
    • Meanwhile, the United States Court of Federal Claims oversees claims against the United States.
    • These claims include money damages against the U.S., unlawful takings of private property by the federal government, and disputes over federal contracts.

  • Structure of the Federal Reserve

    • The presidentially appointed Board of Governors (or Federal Reserve Board), an independent federal government agency located in Washington, D.C.
    • The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), composed of the seven members of the Federal Reserve Board and five of the 12 Federal Reserve Bank presidents, which oversees open market operations, the principal tool of U.S. monetary policy.
    • Twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation, which divide the nation into twelve Federal Reserve districts.
    • The Federal Reserve Banks act as fiscal agents for the U.S.
    • Recall the structure of the Federal Reserve System of the United States

  • Types of Courts

    • The federal court system has three levels: district courts, courts of appeals, and the Supreme Court.
    • The federal court system is divided into three levels: the first and lowest level is the United States district courts, the second, intermediate level is the court of appeals, and the Supreme Court is considered the highest court in the United States.
    • The United States district courts are the general federal trial courts, although in many cases Congress has passed statutes which divert original jurisdiction to these specialized courts or to administrative law judges (ALJs).
    • In these cases, the district courts have jurisdiction to hear appeals from such lower bodies.
    • The United States courts of appeals are the federal intermediate appellate courts.

  • The Judicial Branch

    • The United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government.
    • In the US federal court system, federal cases are tried in trial courts, known as the US district courts, followed by appellate courts and then the Supreme Court.
    • A court of appeals decides appeals from the district courts within its federal judicial circuit, and in some instances from other designated federal courts and administrative agencies.
    • The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system.
    • Each federal judicial district has at least one courthouse, and many districts have more than one.

  • Devolution

    • Federal systems differ in that state or provincial government is guaranteed in the constitution.
    • However, the broad range of powers reserved for the 50 states cannot be voided by any act of U.S. federal government.
    • The District of Columbia is constitutionally under the control of the United States Congress, which created the current District government.
    • Any law passed by District legislature can be nullified by Congressional action.
    • In the United States, local governments are subdivisions of states, while the federal government, state governments and federally recognized American Indian tribal nations are recognized by the United States Constitution.

  • U.S. Court of Appeals

    • The U.S. federal courts of appeals, also known as appellate courts or circuit courts, hear appeals from district courts as well as appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies.
    • Court of Federal Claims, the Patent and Trademark Office, and others.
    • Every federal court litigant has the right to appeal an unfavorable ruling from the district court by requesting a hearing in a circuit court.
    • The procedure within appellate courts diverges widely from that within district courts.
    • Discuss the role of the U.S. federal courts of appeals in the judiciary

  • The Federal Reserve System's Structure

    • Unique feature of a Federal Reserve Bank is each bank is a federally chartered corporation.
    • Furthermore, every national commercial bank is required to purchase stock of the Federal Reserve Bank in its district, equaling to 6% of the commercial bank's net equity (capital).
    • In turn, the nine directors elect the president of the Fed district bank.
    • First, Board of Governors earns its revenue from the 12 district banks.
    • The FOMC consists of the Board of Governors, plus five Fed district bank presidents.

  • Electoral Districts

    • In federations there may be a separate body for each subnational government.
    • District magnitude is the number of representatives elected from a given district to the same legislative body.
    • A single-member district has one representative, whereas a multi-member district has more than one.
    • Proportional representation voting systems inherently require multi-member districts, and the larger the district magnitude the more proportional a system tends to be.
    • This redrawing is necessary under single-member district systems, as each new representative requires his or her own district.