Court Power

COURT
POWER

UNIT 6-11

LESSON OVERVIEW

 Students Will Be Able To:

o Apply the concepts of common law, judicial activism and restraint, double jeopardy, and dual prosecution.

o Evaluate what approaches to law make courts fairest and most effective.

Vocabulary:

o Double Jeopardy, Dual Prosecution, Civil Law, Common Law, Judicial Activism, Judicial Restraint

ESSENTIAL QUESTION- HOW APPROPRIATE ARE THE COURTS'
POWERS FOR CREATING AN EFFECTIVE AND FAIR GOVERNMENT?

Your Opinion Matters!

As you look over these
statements which ones do
you think are good and/or
bad and why?
Hint- think about
everything we have
covered about the
principles of government
so far.

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Justices are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.​

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Justices can hold their positions for life.​

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Court decisions are decided by a simple majority (5 out of 9 justices)​

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The power of judicial review lets the Court declare laws unconstitutional

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Supreme Court decisions set precedents that all other courts must follow.​

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CIVIL LAW AND COMMON LAW

 Both of these terms describe a way to organize laws based on how you interpret them

 Historically Common Law began in England during the Middle Ages and Civil Law began in continental Europe (the rest of what we call Europe on the map)

 Civil Law- courts interpret laws by examining written legal codes as passed by legislatures and apply them to a given situation

o Civil Law judges are primarily concerned with correctly applying existing laws

 Common Law- courts make decisions based on similar, previous cases (Precedents)

o Common Law judges follow precedents and help to make laws clearer as new court cases develop

 The United States' court system, including the Supreme Court, uses common law which we borrowed from the British

Multiple Choice

Which line from the video BEST characterizes the United States' legal system as following common law?

• "which belongs to the Anglo-American legal system"

• "the judge would... look for a comparable case"

• "the court held the department store owner responsible"

JUDICIAL ACTIVISM AND RESTRAINT

 These are two different philosophies (ways of thinking) that can influence a Justice to change policy

 Judicial Activism- the idea that Justices should use the Supreme Court to influence policy to reflect modern issues and create positive social change (Loose Constructionism)

 Judicial Restraint- is the idea that Justices should follow
established precedents and not make major changes (Strict Constructionism)

 So even with these philosophies, the government has rules in place to limit the power of the judicial branch (Checks and Balances)

 Point to Ponder - Can you think of examples of how the court has used these philosophies?

HOW THE COURTS AFFECT POLICY

The courts have the ability to focus on an exact policy or question, whereas the Executive and Legislative branches take a broader view

The Judicial Branch can influence policy through ruling and interpretations

Example- The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) also known as "Obama Care"

oThis law significantly changed the nation's healthcare system with the goal of making
healthcare more affordable

oCritics of the law knew that Congress was unlikely to change the law, so they took it to the
courts

oThey challenged the "constitutionality" of the law and wanted the Supreme Court to exercise Judicial Review

oThe Court ruled in a 5-4 decision to uphold the ACA law (2012)

oIn 2014 the Court rules that corporations could, for religious reasons, be exempt from some of the requirements of the law

o2015 the Court ruled that the federal government was able to provide tax credits to those that bought their insurance through the service

In this role the Supreme Court is acting like an Umpire and enforcing the rules between the Executive and Legislative Branches

DOUBLE JEOPARDY

The role of courts is to put people on trial for committing crimes, but we also have rules in place to protect those people's rights

You are protected from Double Jeopardy- being put on trial for the same crime more than once (5th Amendment of the Constitution)

DUAL PROSECUTION

It is possible to be prosecuted at both the state and
federal level and not violate the Double Jeopardy rules

The crime would have to violate both state and federal laws, known as Dual Prosecution- double prosecution

Example-

oIn 2015 an Alabama court sentenced Terance Martez
Gamble to one year in prison for possessing a handgun illegally

oThis also violated a federal law and a federal court sentence him to three more years

oTook his case to the Supreme Court, in a 7-2 decision the
Supreme Court ruled this did not violate Double Jeopardy

oThe majority decision held that due to federalism there were two separate courts and thereby two separate offenses

COURT POWER & INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS

The Constitution protects the rights of people, especially when dealing with courts and crimes

Examples-

oRight to a speedy trial

oProtection from testifying against yourself

oProtection from unreasonable search and seizures

oProtection from cruel and unusual punishment

Courts need to balance individual constitutional rights with the need to protect the public/society

Questions to Consider-

oIf pulled over for speeding and given a breathalyzer is that an unreasonable search and seizure?

oHow far does free speech go until it is considered an illegal threat of violence against someone?

 Remember that courts make decisions that can influence people
throughout the country

ESSENTIAL QUESTION- HOW APPROPRIATE ARE THE COURTS'
POWERS FOR CREATING AN EFFECTIVE AND FAIR
GOVERNMENT?

 Civil law is based on legal codes, while common law is based on precedents.

 Court rulings can change public policies.

 Judicial activism involves making rulings to change policies, while judicial restraint
seeks to limit changes.

 People cannot be tried for the same offense twice, but they can be tried for
breaking similar state and federal laws.

 Courts must balance individual rights with the common good.