united states federal courts

Examples of united states federal courts in the following topics:

• 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).
  • The United States courts of appeals are the federal intermediate appellate courts.
  • In a few situations, like lawsuits between state governments or some cases between the federal government and a state, the Supreme Court becomes the court of original jurisdiction.

• Basic Judicial Requirements

  • In federal legislation, regulations governing the "courts of the United States" only refer to the courts of the United States government, and not the courts of the individual states.
  • Unlike some state courts, the power of federal courts to hear cases and controversies is strictly limited.
  • 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.
  • Congress has established a procedure whereby a party, typically the defendant, can remove a case from state court to federal court, provided that the federal court also has original jurisdiction over the matter.

• The Judicial Branch

  • Constitution, the Supreme Court and federal courts make up the judiciary branch of the United States.
  • The United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government.
  • It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all federal courts and over state court cases involving issues of federal law.
  • The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal court system .
  • The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system.

• "We the People"

  • It can also be seen as confirming that the government under the Constitution was intended to govern and protect "the people" directly, as one society, rather than governing only the states as political units.
  • If federal legislation conflicts with state laws, the federal legislation prevails and the state must defer to the federal government.
  • The Court has recognized the federal government's supreme power over those limited matters entrusted to it.
  • Often modeled after the federal Constitution, they outline the structure of the state government and typically establish a bill of rights, an executive branch headed by a governor (and often one or more other officials, such as a lieutenant governor and state attorney general), a state legislature, and state courts, including a state supreme court.
  • (A few states have two high courts: for civil cases and for criminal cases).

• Federalism

  • Federalism is the system where sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent units.
  • Federalism is the system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units.
  • Dual federalism is defined in contrast to cooperative federalism, in which national and state governments collaborate on policy.
  • The federal government acquired no substantial new powers until the acceptance by the Supreme Court of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
  • From 1938 until 1995, the Supreme Court did not invalidate any federal statute as exceeding Congress' power under the Commerce Clause.

• U.S. Court of Appeals

  • The U.S. courts of appeals review the decisions made in trial courts and often serve as the final arbiter in federal cases.
  • 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.
  • The U.S. courts of appeals are among the most powerful and influential courts in the United States.
  • Discuss the role of the U.S. federal courts of appeals in the judiciary

• 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.
  • If a Federal Court has subject matter jurisdiction over one or more of the claims in a case, it has discretion to exercise ancillary jurisdiction over other state law claims.
  • Discuss the different levels of jurisdiction by state and federal courts in the American legal system

• Judicial Federalism

  • The first Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established the lower federal courts and specified the details of federal court jurisdiction.
  • Section 25 of the Judiciary Act provided for the Supreme Court to hear appeals from state courts when the state court decided that a federal statute was invalid or when the state court upheld a state statute against a claim that the state statute was repugnant to the Constitution.
  • This provision gave the Supreme Court the power to review state court decisions involving the constitutionality of both federal and state statutes.
  • As of 2010, the United States Supreme Court had held some 163 Acts of the U.S.
  • Analyze the complex role of the state and federal judiciary in the federal system

• Dual Federalism: From the Civil War to the 1930s

  • Dual federalism is a theory of federal constitutional law in the United States where governmental power is divided into two separate spheres.
  • One sphere of power belongs to the federal government while the other severally belongs to each constituent state.
  • President Jackson used the theory as part of his justification in combating the national bank and the Supreme Court moved the law in the direction of dual federalism.
  • The Court used the theory to underpin its rationale in cases where it narrowed the meaning of commerce and expanded state authority through enlarging state police power.
  • National courts now interpret the federal government as the final judge of its own powers under dual federalism.

• U.S. District Courts

  • The United States district courts are the trial courts within the U.S. federal court system.
  • There are a total of ninety-four district courts throughout the U.S. states and territories .
  • Every state and territory has at least one district court that is responsible for hearing cases that arise within that geographic area.
  • Meanwhile, the United States Court of Federal Claims oversees claims against the United States.
  • Each state has at least one district court that is responsible for overseeing civil and criminal cases in a given region.