Federal Court System Vocabulary

a court's authority to hear and decide cases

• original jurisdiction

• majority opinion

• jurisdiction

• judicial review

an appellate court decision to agree with the district court's ruling

• majority opinion

• appellate jurisdiction

• remand

• affirm

the authority of a court to hear a case appealed from a lower court

• judicial review

• appellate jurisdiction

• original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court

• original jurisdiction

the authority of a court to hear a case before any other court does

• original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court

• appellate jurisdiction

• judicial review

• original jurisdiction

trial courts for the federal system and the only federal courts to have juries

• US District Court

• writ of certiorari

• original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court

• US Circuit Court of Appeals

Order by the Supreme Court directing a lower court to send up the records of a case for review

• US District Court

• dissenting opinion

• writ of certiorari

• majority opinion

to send a case back to a lower court to be tried again

• affirm

• judicial review

• jurisdiction

• remand

a statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion

• majority opinion

• US Circuit Court of Appeals

• dissenting opinion

• appellate jurisdiction

the court that hears the appeal of the court decision made in the US District Court. No juries in an appellate court

• Original jurisdiction

• appellate jurisdiction

• dissenting opinion

• US Circuit Court of Appeals

The power of the courts to declare laws unconstitutional

• judicial review

• original jurisdiction

• appellate jurisdiction

• jurisdiction