Chapter 15: The Judiciary

What is a civil suit?

A lawsuit filed by a person, organization, or government against another person, organization, or government

Which term describes a written brief that individuals or interest groups submit to the court when they have an interest in a lawsuit but are not themselves direct parties to the suit?

Amicus curiae

An individual accused and convicted of a crime believes that the trial court made a mistake applying the law to the case. What can the accused legally do in this case?

Appeal

Which article in the United States Constitution discusses the judicial branch?

Article iii

An opinion that agrees with the majority opinion but has a separate rationale for doing so is called what?

Concurring Opinion

What is the formal opinion and justification that disagrees with the majority opinion in a Supreme Court case called?

Dissenting Opinion

Which Supreme Court case ruled that black Americans could not be citizens?

Dred Scott v. Sanford

Which of the following Supreme Court cases applied the commerce clause as a test for constitutionality?

Gibbons v. Ogden

What is a group of between sixteen and twenty-three citizens who determine whether or not there is sufficient evidence to prosecute an accused person called?

Grand Jury

Under what circumstances can Congress simply overturn a court's decision?

If the court's decision is based on the meaning of a statute

What is the process that gives federal courts the power to declare actions of Congress, the president, or state officials unconstitutional called?

Judicial review

In 2016, two California men were charged with involuntary manslaughter after a fire at their dilapidated warehouse killed 36 people. In court, the defendants admitted guilt and asked for prison sentences of six and nine years. The judge turned down the defendants, claiming they did not accept "full responsibility and remorse" for the fire. What arrangement are the California defendants and their attorneys attempting to make with the court?

Plea bargin

Which term refers to a judge's decision to adhere to the previous decisions of other judges?

Prescedent

Whose Court is friendlier toward businesses than any Court preceding it, for example, declaring corporations have the same First Amendment speech rights as citizens?

Roberts

After the Court struck down several pieces of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal legislation, how did he strike back?

Roosevelt proposed a plan to force justices over 70 years old to retire.

Who was the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court?

Sandra Day O'Connor

Who is responsible for confirming Supreme Court nominees?

Senate

Which government entity conducts hearings on Supreme Court nominees?

Senate Judiciary Committee

Professor Christine Blasey Ford charged Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault during the confirmation hearings. In response, Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh denied the allegations. What was the outcome of the televised hearings?

The Senate approved Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh.

What happens after the Senate Judiciary Committee approves a nomination for Supreme Court justice?

The Senate votes

Which statement accurately reflects judicial restraint, activism, and ideology?

The vast majority of judges are restrained toward laws that they agree with ideologically but are willing to overturn laws that they are distant from ideologically.

If Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan are interested in hearing a case on a contemporary issue related to criminal law, but the other Supreme Court justices do not want to hear the case, what happens?

They will not hear the case because of the rule of four

Who was the first black Supreme Court justice?

Thurgood Marshall

Which Supreme Court case argued that Congress could only apply the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to states, not individuals?

United States v. Cruikshank

What is a request for review of a case by the U.S. Supreme Court called?

Writ of certiorari