Chapter 15

About _____ percent of all cases in the United States are heard in federal courts.

1%

There are _____ circuits in the United States Court of appeals.

12

About _______ percent of all lower court cases are reviewed by federal appeals courts.

20

Under normal rules of oral argument, each lawyer has ________ to present his or her case before the Supreme Court.

30 minutes

Each year, the Supreme Court receives about ______ appeals and hears about ______ of them in full court.

8,500; 80

How many justices currently serve on the Supreme Court?

9

What is the significance of dissenting opinions?

Dissents are signs that the Court is in disagreement on an issue and could change its ruling.

When President Andrew Jackson repeatedly said "John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it," what did he mean?

The Supreme Court is unable to enforce its decisions without the aid of the executive branch.

What is the main function of the chief justice of the Supreme Court?

The chief justice presides over the Court's public sessions and private conferences.

When a justice agrees with the ruling of the Court's majority but not all of its reasoning, he or she may often write ________.

a concurrence

A person, agency, or interest group not directly a party to a case but with an interest in its outcome may file a(n) ________ brief.

amicus curiae

Which of the following is part of the Miranda rule?

arrested people have the right to remain silent

The written document in which attorneys explain why the court should rule in favor of their clients is called a(n) ____.

brief

A single lawsuit involving thousands of smokers suing a tobacco company would be a good example of

class action suit

In what type of law is the government always the plaintiff?

criminal law

Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called

district courts

If a man is arrested because his home was searched by police without a legal warrant, he could argue in court that he had been denied ________.

due process of law

The right of due process is best described as the right of

every person not to be treated arbitrarily by a government official or agency.

The requirement of standing means that parties in a case must

have a concrete injury or interest at stake

The assignment of the opinion in the Supreme Court case is

important because differences in wording and emphasis can have important implications for how the decision is interpreted in future litigation.

The number of cases filed in the Supreme Court has

increased dramatically since 1940.

Through the exercise of ________, the Supreme Court has held actions or laws of the executive and legislative branches unconstitutional.

judicial review

What is common law?

law made by judges through their decisions, not through specific statutes

The phrase stare decisis means

let the decision stand

In Roe v. Wade (1973), the Supreme Court was required to rule on the issue of ______ due to the fact that the pregnancy had already come to term.

mootness

The party that brings a complaint in court is called the _____, and the one against whom the complaint is brought is called the ______.

plaintiff; defendant

A "certiorari pool" describes the

practice by which Supreme Court law clerks work together to evaluate each petition.

Aside from the justices themselves, who or what has the greatest power in shaping the flow of cases to the Supreme Court?

solicitor general

The writ of habeus corpus declares that

the government must show a legal cause for holding someone in detention.

The solicitor general is the

third-ranking official in the Department of Justice.