Magruder’s American Government
1st Edition
ISBN: 9780133306996
Textbook solutions
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Section 7-2: The Supreme Court
Exercise 1
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Solution 2
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Through the article of **judicial review**, the Supreme Court has the power, is authorized, and obligated to hear the cases that pose a problem to the legislative and executive branches of the government. Furthermore, the Supreme Court has the power to check on actions that aren’t under the Constitution or check on other branches if necessary.
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There are **three equal branches** of government in USA:
1.**Legislative**, which is represented in Congress
2.**Executive**, which is represented by the President
3.**Judicial**, which is represented in the Supreme Court
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As the third branch of government, the Supreme Court has jurisdiction of reviewing the acts of the first two branches of government. The institute that enables this function is called **judicial review**.
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Judicial review implies that the Supreme Court is the **highest authority** on all matters concerning the Constitution, acts of Congress and treaties.
All federal and State courts have the power of judicial review for these matters, but the Supreme Court is the **final instance**.
All federal and State courts have the power of judicial review for these matters, but the Supreme Court is the **final instance**.
Exercise 2
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**Marbury v. Madison** case is the result of events after the 1800 elections that were won by Thomas Jefferson.
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Federalists who lost the election used the time between the election and the establishment of the new administration to try to appoint members of their party to important positions in the judiciary. The intention was to establish at least partial control of the new administration through the judiciary.
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The Federalists managed to appoint certain people just before the new President Thomas Jefferson took office, and William Marbury was among them. He was appointed to a position in the District of Columbia. Former President Adams signed the commissions of the office for Marbury and some other new judges. However, that signed documentation was not delivered to them.
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The new administration did not want to submit the necessary documentation. The person who was secretary of state in the new administration, James Madison, was in charge of delivering these commissions. Madison did not deliver the disputed documents on the orders of the new President Jefferson.William Marbury requested from the Supreme Court to issue writs of mandamus, which is in fact a court decision that would force Madison to perform his duties and deliver the disputed commissions.
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The Supreme Court rejected Marbury’s request because it found that the Judiciary Act invoked by Marbury was unconstitutional and therefore null and void.
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The case Marbury v. Madison arose after the elections in 1800. Consequently, the case happened to the political entanglement between James Madison, who as the new president did not deliver commissions to William Marbury, who then went to the Supreme Court to demand a force delivery.
Exercise 3
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The Supreme Court has two types of jurisdiction:
**1. Original jurisdiction
2. Appellate jurisdiction**
Most cases involve appeals from lower federal courts or higher State courts.
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The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court involves two types of cases:
1. Those to which a State is a party
2. Those affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls
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The Court has many more cases that fall under appellate jurisdiction. Many of these cases the Court refused to consider. Consideration of an appeal before a Court depends on “the rule of four”: if four out of nine judges are in favor, the case will be heard before the Supreme Court.
Result
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We can conclude that the original jurisdiction implies that the case takes place in the Court from beginning to end, with the examination of witnesses, the taking of evidence, etc. On the other hand, appellate jurisdiction involves the review of a case that has already taken place in one of the lower courts.
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The structure of the Supreme Court jurisdiction consists of the original and appellate jurisdiction. These two structures deal with cases of different subjects.
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**Original jurisdiction** deals with the cases that have a state as the party. It is referred to as a court where the cases mostly originate for the first time.
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**Appellate jurisdiction** usually handles the cases that are brought against ambassadors and other public ministers. It can be referred to as the court that mostly reviews verdicts of the other courts.
Exercise 4
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Most of the cases that the Supreme Court processes come to its attention by **writ of certiorari**, which means “to be made more certain”. Usually it is the lower courts that get directed to send the case for a review to the Supreme Court.
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Another way the cases reach the Supreme Court is by **certificate**. It occurs when a lower court is not sure about the procedure or the rule of the law that needs to be applied to the case. Thus, they ask the Supreme Court to assist it in certifying the answer to the questioned matter. Therefore, lower courts request the matter to be review by the Supreme Court.
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Furthermore, **some cases demand a more serious review**, so they are sent to the Supreme Court. Usually, justices or clerks recognize cases like that.
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The cases reach the Supreme Court mostly by **writ of certiorari** and **certificate**. See the steps for more explanation
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Most cases come to the Supreme Court by writ of certiorari. Another, much rarer way for a case to reach the Supreme Court is by certificate.
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Writs of Certiorari allows any of the parties which are in dispute in lower courts to request the Supreme Court to issue a writ. This means that the Supreme Court is able to request the lower court to submit all records from the process for review. These proposals were accepted only if they were important constitutional and statutory issues.
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In the second case, the cases may come to the Supreme Court by certificate. If lower courts are unsure about the procedure or rule of law they should apply in their case, they themselves can ask the Supreme Court to certify their answer to a specific question in the matter.
Exercise 5
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The **Supreme Court** primarily **tries to interpret whether the case violates the Constitution** or it does not. The decisions are ruled by the nine judges who never have relations with the political influence of democrats or republicans.
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Before a case is ruled, nine judges always discuss a case that is currently undergoing, then summarize the case and suggest its ruling. When all of the judge’s decisions are acquired, they are put to the vote and get the final solution to the case based on the **majority opinion**.
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Supreme Court judges meet at special conferences every Friday during the court’s annual work. These conferences are attended exclusively by nine judges of this court and they discuss ongoing cases as well as the taking of new cases
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Consideration of cases heard before the court begins with the Chief Judge’s presentation. In addition to summarizing the case, he also expresses his opinion on how the court should decide the case.
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After that, each judge presents his conclusions, after which a decision is made. All decisions must be made by a majority of five votes. After making a decision, the court publishes its decision, which is accompanied by one or more opinions. If the decision is unanimous, the court opinion is written by the Chief Judge. If the decision is divided, the Chief Judge has the option to entrust the writing of the majority opinion to someone else. If the Chief Judge is in the minority, the opinion of the majority is written by senior justice in the majority.
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