quiz 3 govt 2305
The imminent lawless action test
says that speech must be likely to produce lawless action. has two criteria for speech advocating the unlawful use of force. says that for speech to be restricted, it must be directed at inciting or producing imminent lawless action.
The process by which the Supreme Court makes certain parts of the Bill of Rights applicable through the Fourteenth Amendment to actions by state governments is known as ______ incorporation.
selective
The process by which the Supreme Court makes certain parts of the Bill of Rights applicable through the Fourteenth Amendment to actions by state governments is known as ________incorporation.
selective or selective incorporation
The "federal court myth" is the inaccurate belief that
state courts play a role subordinate to federal courts.
The structure of the state court systems is defined by
state laws
In a case involving protester Gregory Johnson, the Supreme Court ruled that burning the American flag was protected specifically as ______ speech.
symbolic
The Supreme Court has ruled that the right of free assembly
takes precedence over the possibility that the exercise of the right might have undesirable consequences.
Presidents can influence the courts by
-choosing to enforce court decisions - influencing the cases that come before courts
What constitutional amendment is of special significance for the Supreme Court when considering how to best protect individual rights from action by state and local governments?
14
In the process of selective incorporation, which is the amendment that the Supreme Court relies on to apply most, but not all, of the provisions of the Bill of Rights to actions by the state governments
14th
In the process of selective incorporation, which is the amendment that the Supreme Court relies on to apply most, but not all, of the provisions of the Bill of Rights to actions by the state governments?
14th
What constitutional amendment is of special significance for the Supreme Court when considering how to best protect individual rights from action by state and local governments
14th
How many women currently serve on the Supreme Court, as of December 2018?
3
There are ______ federal district courts altogether, with at least one court in every state.
94
Under which of the following Supreme Court cases did part of the Bill of Rights first become incorporated to apply to actions by the states?
Barron v. Baltimore
Which of the following circuit courts has jurisdiction over appeals involving patents and international trade?
Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Overall, what effect has the exercise of judicial review had on the balance of power between levels of government and the branches of government in the United States?
It has increased the power of the courts by creating new powers. It has increased the power of the federal government.
What is the purpose of the writ of certiorari?
It is an order from a higher court for a lower court to produce a certified record of a case.
In 1993, a Wisconsin law that allowed lengthier sentences for hate crimes was challenged as a violation of the First Amendment. How did the Court rule?
It upheld the law because it was not aimed at free speech but at actions that were not protected by the First Amendment.
What is the source of judicial review?
John Marshall's opinion in Marbury v. Madison
In 2016, the Republican majority in the Senate announced it would not call hearings on Barack Obama's nominee,
Merrick Garland.
Which of the following Supreme Court cases was also known as the "Pentagon Papers" case?
New York Times Co. v. United States
Since the 1950s, what has been the government's approach to free speech?
Not a single individual has been convicted solely for criticizing the government's war policies. The Supreme Court has ruled that national security must truly be at risk before the government can limit speech. The Supreme Court has ruled that spoken words do not pose a true threat to national security, so Americans can speak their minds politically.
Which of the following statements are true of libel and slander
Public officials can usually be criticized freely without fear of the writer or speaker will have to pay for damages due to libel or slander Laws on libel and slander are based on the assumption that society has an ingest in encouraging media and citizens to express themselves freely
How does public opinion affect Supreme Court decisions?
Republican appointees are more likely than Democratic appointees to side with law enforcement officials instead of with the criminally accused
Which of the following statements concerning the political orientation of Supreme Court justices is correct?
Republican appointees are more likely than Democratic appointees to side with law enforcement officials instead of with the criminally accused
In which 2011 case did the Supreme Court rule that the First Amendment's protection of speech extended even to hate speech during the funerals of soldiers killed in action?
Snyder v. Phelps
Which of the following statements concerning the Constitution and the judiciary is true?
The Constitution is silent concerning the approach that judges should take in deciding cases where the law is not completely clear.
Why is it impossible to firmly settle the argument over judicial restraint and activism?
The Constitution offers no specific method of decision making
Which of the following statements are true concerning the Supreme Court's decisions involving symbolic speech?
The Supreme Court has protected symbolic speech nearly as vigorously as actual speech. The Supreme Court has ruled that burning an American flag is a protected form of symbolic speech.
Judges might not be able to use legal precedents if their cases
fall in between competing precedents. have significant differences from precedents.
The Supreme Court decision in Schenck v. United States established which principle?
The federal government can restrict free expression but it does not have unlimited authority to do so.
Which of the following is not part of the Missouri Plan for selecting state-level judges?
The political parties nominate judicial candidates to run for office.
Which statement is true regarding decisions made by the federal courts of appeals?
The vast majority of their decisions are final, in that the Supreme Court accepts only a small fraction of appeals.
Which of the following statements correctly describe U.S. district courts?
They are the chief trial courts of the federal court system. They are the only federal courts where cases are decided by a jury.
Amicus curiae briefs have what impact on the American legal system?
They help the court to understand how interested parties feel about the case in question.
The only type of federal court that features two sides presenting a case to a jury for a verdict is
a district court
Following oral argument, the Supreme Court justices meet in complete privacy and secrecy to discuss and vote on the case. This meeting of the justices is called
a judicial conference
England's ______ gave members of Protestant sects the right to worship freely and publicly. The first Amendment reflects this tradition.
act of toleration
The Supreme Court receives most of its cases through which jurisdiction?
appellate
The Supreme Court has
appellate jurisdiction, original jurisdiction
The doctrine of judicial restraint implies that it is the duty of judges to
apply the law.
The Constitution specifies that all federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, shall be
appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
the u.s. district courts
are the lowest federal courts.
Interest groups that rely on a judicial strategy to advance their cause are careful in their choice of
cases that have a chance of success.
Twelve of the thirteen federal appellate courts cover specific geographic regions, which are called
circuits
The type of state law that involves such issues as business disputes or divorces is known as
civil law
The Constitution establishes the Supreme Court. Which entity is empowered by the Constitution to establish the lower federal courts?
congress
Concerning symbolic speech, the Supreme Court has generally held that government regulation of the ______ of a message is unconstitutional. (This was illustrated by a Texas flag-burning case; the state of Texas actually burns old flags to dispose of them.)
content
which of the following federal court levels does not have original jurisdiction
court of appeals
The type of state law that involves issues such as shoplifting, murder, and rape is known as ______ law.
criminal
The Supreme Court, recognizing public opinion in the Brown v. Board of Education case, required local school systems to
desegregate "with all deliberate speed" instead of immediately.
In Engle v. Vitale (1962), the Supreme Court ruled against the reciting of prayers in public schools on grounds it violates the
establishment clause
True or false: In a 1992 cases involving a St. Paul, Minnesota city ordinance, the Supreme Court ruled that the government can restrict hate speech as it causes "anger or alarm.
false
True or false: In a 1992 cases involving a St. Paul, Minnesota city ordinance, the Supreme Court ruled that the government can restrict hate speech as it causes "anger or alarm."
false
True or false: The Supreme Court's decision gives the legal basis for the Court's ruling.
false
Federal courts usually do not intervene in state court matters unless a ______ issue or law is involved.
federal
In 2017, the Republican-controlled Senate abolished the use of the ______ as a way to prevent a Supreme Court nominee from taking a seat on the Court, thus diminishing the likelihood that a nominee will be blocked on the basis of partisanship.
filibuster
According to the doctrine of judicial restraint, judges should
generally defer to the policy decisions made by elected officials.
The reason that precedent is important for judges is that it
gives predictability to the law so people know what is legal.
The establishment clause of the Constitution restricts which of the following?
government from favoring one religion over another government from supporting religion over no religion
Appellate courts review which aspect of lower court decisions?
how lower court applied the law
The barrier to restrict speech established in Brandenburg v. Ohio is best described as
imposing
Judicial review is a term that refers to the power the Supreme Court has to
invalidate a law or action on constitutional grounds.
The written brief in a court case
is an argument by a party to the case as to why its position should be upheld by the court
Administrative law is a type of law that
is set by government agencies
alexander Hamilton said that the power of the Supreme Court rested on the power of
jed
Statutory laws are created by which branch of government?
legislative
each of the 50 states
maintains its own court system.
An opinion in a case that is agreed upon by at least five of the nine members of the Supreme Court who participated in the decision is called the
majority opinion
Compared with Republican presidents, Democratic presidents have appointed ______ to the federal bench.
more minorities more women
The Supreme Court tends to hear cases
of substantial legal significance
Which of the following are issued by the Supreme Court after hearing a case?
one or more opinions a decision
A Supreme Court ______ explains the justices' legal basis for their decision.
opinion
When a majority of the Supreme Court justices agree on a decision but not the legal reasoning behind it, the Court issues a ______, which is the opinion having the most justices in support of it.
plurality opinion
Supreme Court justices tend to vote according to their personal
political attitudes
In his book Electing Justices, Richard Davis likens Supreme Court appointments in the era of party polarization to
political campaigns
The nominating process for the Supreme Court places high importance on which of the following aspects of a potential Supreme Court nominee?
political philosophy legal credentials
Free speech is usually protected in the United States unless it
presents a clear and present danger to others. leads to imminent and lawless action. involves false commercial advertising claims.
Under the common law tradition, judges should base their decisions on
previous judicial rulings.
the attempt to block the publication of material considered to be harmful is known as _____ restraint
prior
In Gitlow v. New York, the Supreme Court ruled that the Bill of Rights
protects individuals from actions by state governments as well as the federal government.
Appellate courts
review whether a lower court correctly applied and interpreted applicable law.
Recent Supreme Court appointees have come overwhelming from what background?
the appellate courts
To whom or what does the president typically delegate the task of identifying nominees to lower-court positions?
the deputy attorney general
what are the religious clauses in the first amendment
the establishment clause the free-exercise clause
In Brandenburg v. Ohio the Supreme Court developed which of the following tests that expanded protections for Americans to voice political opinions?
the imminent lawless action test
The 1977 Supreme Court case that provided guidance on the allowable restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of assembly upheld which of the following?
the right of an American Nazi Party group to hold a parade in Skokie, a city with a large Jewish population that included Holocaust survivors
In Lemon v. Kurtzman, the Supreme Court ruled that the state funding of salaries for teachers at parochial schools, even if they taught secular subjects, violated the establishment clause because
the teachers could use classroom time to teach religious subjects.
True or false: Studies by political scientists have shown that Supreme Court justices tend to vote according to their political attitudes.
true
Alexander Hamilton said that of all the branches of government, the Supreme Court was the
weakest
Presidents typically nominate people to lower-court judgeships
who share the same political party as they do.