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Federal Court Basics
Part 016

The United States Supreme Court.

The U.S. Supreme Court is the highest cc in the nation. It is a different kind of appeals court its major function is not correcting errors made by trial judges, but clarifying the law when other courts disagree about the interpretation of the Constitution federal laws.

Unlike the U.S. courts of appeals, however, the Supreme Court does not have to hear every case that it is asked to review. The Supreme Court decides whether or not it will hear a case. Each year, losing parties ask the Supreme Court to review about 7,000 of the almost 30 million cases handled by the state and federal courts. These cases come to the Supreme Court as petitions for writ of certiorari. The court selects only about 100 of the most significant cases to review.

The decisions the Supreme Court hands down on cases appeal from lower courts set precedents for the interpretation of the Constitution and federal laws that all other courts, both state and federal, must follow. This power of judicial review makes the Supreme Court's role in our government vital. judicial review is the power of any court, when deciding a case, to declare that a law passed by a legislature or an action of an executive official is invalid because it is inconsistent with the Constitution. Although district courts, courts of appeals, and state courts can exercise the power of judicial review, their decisions are always subject to review by the Supreme Court on appeal. When the Supreme Court declares a law unconstitutional, however, its decision can only be overruled by a later decision of the Supreme Court or by an amendment to the Constitution. Seven of the twenty‑seven amendments to the Constitution have invalidated decisions of the Supreme Court. However, most Supreme Court cases do not concern the constitutionality of laws but the interpretation of laws passed by Congress.

Although Congress has steadily increased the number of district and appeals court judges over the years, the Supreme Court has remained the same size since 1869, with a Chief Justice and eight associate justices. Like all federal judges, the justices are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. However, unlike the courts of appeals, the Supreme Court never sits in panels. All nine justices hear every case, and cases are decided by a majority ruling.

The Supreme Court begins its annual session or term on the first Monday of October. The term lasts until the Court has announced it's decisions in all of the cases in which it has heard argument‑usually until July. During the term, the Court, sitting for two weeks at a time, hears oral argument on Monday through Wednesday and then holds private conferences to discuss the cases, reach decisions, and begin preparing the opinions. Most decisions, with their opinions, are released in the late spring and early summer.

The decisions of the Supreme Court affect the lives of millions of people, from magazine editors trying to decide whether publishing a disparaging article about a famous person may make them liable for damages, to taxpayers whose tax bill may be affected by rulings about state and federal tax laws. The widespread impact of some cases results in lively debates in the media. Rarely does everyone agree with an outcome.

Federal Court Basics-Table of Contents
Federal Court Jurisdiction-Table of Contents
Part 003-Map: Geographical boundaries of U.S. Courts of Appeals and U.S. District Courts-pdf