The Judiciary

About ________ percent of all cases in the United States are heard in state courts.

99

________ occurs when a criminal case is resolved through a negotiated agreement before a full trial is completed.

b. A plea bargain

________ is designed to protect federal judges from political pressure by granting them life tenure.

b. Article III of the U.S. Constitution

When interest groups involved in litigation pursue a pattern-of-cases strategy, they are

b. bringing the same type of suit into multiple circuits, hoping that a contradiction in rulings will bring about a Supreme Court review.

When a private individual brings a suit against a company for breaking a contract, this is an example of ________ law.

b. civil

What did the framers call the "least dangerous branch"?

b. the Supreme Court

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

brief

Why is Marbury v. Madison an important case?

c. In this case, the justices authorized the Supreme Court to exercise judicial review over laws passed by Congress.

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 ________.

e. the due process of law

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