Judicial Branch

Federal courts where trials are held and lawsuits are begun...

• circuit courts

• appeals courts

• district courts

• the Supreme Court

Which is NOT true of district courts?

• every state has at least one district court

• all federal cases much begin in a district court

• only federal courts in which witnesses testify and juries hear cases

• only criminal cases are heard in district courts

How did the federal court system originate?

• Article 2 of the Constitution

• created by the first attorney general of the Justice Dept.

• Congress created the federal court system with the Judiciary Act of 1789

• the Federal Judicial System Act of 1800

Which of the following cases would NOT be heard in Federal court?

• someone from Alabama suing someone from Texas for breaking a business contract

• kidnapping, tax evasion, or counterfeiting case

• a person claims freedom of religion was violated

• someone breaks into your house and steals your possessions

This type of jurisdiction means that the case could be tried in either state or federal court.

• original

• concurrent

• exclusive

• appellate

Which is NOT true of Article 3 of the Constitution?

• gave Congress the power to establish lower federal courts

• created the Supreme Court

• gives federal courts exclusive jurisdiction over 8 specific kinds of cases

• states the Supreme Court must have 9 justices

The goal of the U.S. court sytem is to treat every person the same way.

• TRUE

• FALSE

Most U.S. court cases involve state law and are tried in state courts.

• TRUE

• FALSE

What is the job of appeals courts?

• hold jury trials

• decide guilt or innocence

• decide if plaintiff or defendant wins in civil cases

• review decisions made in lower courts

What is a precedent?

• guides other judges on how to rule in similar cases

• sending a case back to a lower court to be tried again

• detailed explanation of the legal thinking behind the court's decision

• a court's authority to hear and decide cases