Week 14/15 - The Federal Courts Quiz

________ and ________ are the two most common types of civil law cases.

Contracts; torts

Which of the following would the Supreme Court likely refuse to hear because of "mootness"?

a case involving a student suing a state-run university for discrimination in the admissions process after the student was first rejected but then later admitted to the university

In some legal actions, a group or class of individuals with common interests file a suit on behalf of everyone who shares the interest. This is called

a class-action suit.

Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called

district courts.

More than 97% of court cases in the United States are heard

in state courts.

In a typical tort case,

one individual charges that he or she has been injured by another's negligence or malfeasance.

"Borking" occurs when

senators draw extensively on excerpts from a judicial nominee's speeches and writings in order to paint the nominee as an extremist who is unqualified to serve in the federal judiciary.

The doctrine of ________ requires courts to follow authoritative prior decisions when ruling

stare decisis

Suppose a defendant is convicted at trial but believes that the judge made an error that impacted the decision. She would first ask her case be tried again at the ________. If she were to lose at that court, she could still try again, if her argument were accepted, at the ________.

supreme court; court of appeals ?

When filing an appeal, an appellant usually must show

the trial court made a legal error in deciding the case.