Judicial Branch/civil Rights

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Standing to sue

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Doctrine which determines whether or not the court should hear a particular federal lawsuit.

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Class Action suits

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which a group of people with the same or similar injuries caused by the same product or action sue the defendant

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Litigation

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rules and practices involved in resolving disputes in the court system.

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Litigants

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Someone involved in a lawsuit

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Justiciable disputes

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A requirement that to be heard in a case must be capable of being settled as a matter of law rather than on other grounds as is commonly the case in legislative.

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appellate jurisdiction

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The jurisdiction of courts that hear cases brought to them on appeal from lower courts. These courts do not review the factual record, only the legal issues involved.

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districts courts

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The 91 federal courts of original jurisdiction. They are the only federal courts in which trial are held and in which juries may be impaneled.

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courts of appeal

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Appellate courts empowered to review all final decisions of district courts, except in rare cases.

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Supreme Court

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The pinnacle of the American judicial system. The court ensures uniformity in interpreting national laws, resolves conflicts among states, and maintains national supremacy in law. It has both original jurisdiction and appellate jurisdiction, but unlike other federal courts, it controls its own agenda.

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Senatorial courtesy

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process by which presidents generally defer selection of district court judges to the choice of senators of their own party who represent the state where the vacancy occurs.

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solicitor general

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the fourth-ranking member of the Department of Justice; responsible for handling nearly all appeals on behalf of the US government to the Supreme Court.

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opinion

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A statement of legal reasoning behind a judicial decision.

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stare decisis

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in court rulings, a reliance on past decisions or precedents to formulate decisions in new cases.

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precedent

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a prior judicial decision that serves as a rule for settling subsequent cases of a similar nature.

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original intent

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A view that the Constitution should be interpreted according to the original intent of the framers.

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judicial implementation

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how and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies affecting more than the immediate parties to a lawsuit.

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Marbury v. Madison

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case in which the Supreme Court first asserted the power of judicial review by finding that the congressional statute extending the Court's original jurisdiction was unconstitutional. Through the supremacy clause.

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Judicial Review

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power of the courts to review acts of other branches of government and the states

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US V. Nixon

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The 1974 case in which the Supreme Court unanimously held that the doctrine of executive privilege was implicit in the Constitution but could not be extended to protect documents relevant to criminal prosecutions.

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Judicial restraint

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a philosophy of judicial decision making that posits courts should allow the decisions of other branches of government to stand, even when they offend the judge's own principles.

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judicial activism

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a philosophy of judicial decision making that posits judges should use their power broadly to further justice.

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statutory construction

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The judicial interpretation of an act of Congress.

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civil liberties

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personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge

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Bill of Rights

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name for list of first ten amendments

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First Amendment

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prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press

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Fourteenth Amendment

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addresses citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws

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incorporation doctrine

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is a constitutional doctrine through which selected provisions of the Bill of Rights are made applicable to the states through the Due Process clause

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selective incorporation

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constitutional doctrine that ensures states cannot enact laws that take away the constitutional rights of American citizens

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establishment clause

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limitation placed upon the United States Congress preventing it from passing legislation respecting religion

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lemon v. kurtzman

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passed a law that allowed the local government to use money to fund educational programs that taught religious-based lessons, activities and studies

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free exercise clause

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section of the First Amendment italicized here: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,

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prior restraint

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censorship imposed, usually by a government, on expression before the expression actually takes place

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libel

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a published false statement that is damaging to a person's reputation

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symbolic speech

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legal term in United States law used to describe actions that purposefully and discernibly convey a particular message

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probable cause

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legal standard by which a police officer has the right to make an arrest

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unreasonable search + seziure

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shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue,

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search warrant

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a legal document authorizing a police officer or other official to enter and search premises

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exclusionary rule

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legal principle which holds evidence collected in violation of defendant

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Fifth Amendment

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No person shall be held to answer for a capital

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self-incrimination

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act of exposing oneself

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Sixth Amendment

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speedy and public trial

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plea bargaining

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any agreement in a criminal case between the prosecutor and defendant whereby the defendant agrees to plead guilty

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Eight Amendment

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prohibiting the federal government from imposing excessive bail, excessive fines, or cruel and unusual punishment

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cruel+unusual punishment

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punishment considered unexceptable due to suffering

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right to privacy

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one's personal information is protected from public scrutiny

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civil rights

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class of rights that protect individuals from infringement

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equal protection of the law

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prohibits states from denying any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws

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thirteenth amendment

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abolished slavery

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civil rights act of 64

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outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

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Fifteenth Amendment

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Constitution prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote

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poll taxes

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had the effect of disenfranchising many blacks as well as poor whites, because payment of the tax was a prerequisite for voting

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twenty fourth amendment

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prohibits both Congress and the states from conditioning the right to vote in federal elections on payment of a poll tax

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nineteenth amendment

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prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex

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ERA

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Equal rights amendment - designed to give equal rights to women

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comparable worth

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men and women should be paid equally

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American Disability Act

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civil rights act that prevents discrimination against disabled.

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affirmative action

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admission policies that provide equal access to education for those groups that have been historically excluded