Judicial Branch

Definition of Equal Treatment

-Every person accused of breaking a law has the right to a public trial and an attorney -if the accused can't afford a lawyer, the court will appoint and pay for one -each person is presumed innocent until proven guilty

13/14/15

13: end slavery 14: born in us are citizens, including african americans👳 right to due process, equal protection 15: everyone can vote

Circuits

Area a court serves

Three levels of Federal Court System

District Courts (lower) Appeals Courts (middle) Supreme Court (top)

Two types of jurisdiction

Exclusive: only Federal Courts may hear and decide cases Concurrent: Federal and State Courts have the right to hear and decide cases. Also applies to cases involving $50,000 or more in suits/claims/damages.

Criminal case

Gov't vs the defendant Gov't accuses a person of violating a law and seeks punishment

Federal court jurisdiction

Hearing or deciding cases that involve: The Constitution Federal Laws Disputes between states Citizens from different states The Federal Government Foreign Governments Maritime Laws US Diplomats

The thirteenth appeals court

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit that has Nationwide jurisdiction to hear special cases. Located in Washington DC.

Appellate Jurisdiction

The authority of a court to hear a case appealed by a lower court

Jurisdiction

The authority to hear and decide a case

Original Jurisdiction

The authority to hear cases for the first time

Circuit Courts

There are 12 They each represent their own geographic area

Organization of appeals court

There are 12 US court of appeals that have jurisdiction over a specific curcuit, which is a particular geographic area.

U.S. District Courts

These are federal courts in which trials are held and lawsuits begun. There are 94 district courts. All federal cases must begin in district courts because they have original jurisdiction. They are trial courts for both criminal and civil cases. They are the only court where witnesses testify and juries hear cases and reach verdicts.

U.S. Court of Appeals

These courts are referred to as: federal appeals court, circuit court of appeals or appellate courts. The job of appeals courts is to review decisions made in lower courts. This is called appellate jurisdiction

Role of the courts

To use the law to settle civil disputes and decide the guilt or innocence of people accused of crimes