Transcript 12 courts of appeals

The Inferior Courts
The District Courts
• 94 district courts
• Handles over 300,000 cases per year (80% of the
federal case load)
• Principal trial courts (original jurisdiction)
• Has both criminal and civil jurisdiction
• Jury consists of 12 people
The Honorable
Matthew J. Perry Jr.
The Courts of Appeals
• Established as “gatekeepers” to relieve the
Supreme Court of much of the burden of hearing
appeals from the District Courts
• There are 12 courts of appeals (12 circuits)
• Defendant may appeal one more time up to the US
Supreme Court
12
Court of Federal Claims
• Citizen or state filing a law suit against the United
States government
• May secure redress (satisfaction of claim)
• Payment can only be made by an act of Congress
(money has to be appropriated)
• 16 judges who serve 15 year terms
The Territorial Courts
• Under its power to govern the territories of the
United States, Congress created courts for the
nation’s territories.
• These courts are in places such as Guam and the
Virgin Islands, and function much like the local
courts in the 50 States.
The District of Columbia
Courts
• As directed in the Constitution, Congress
established a system of courts for the “Seat of
Government of the United States.”
• The District of Columbia handles all local judicial
matters for the district, including trials and appeals.
Washington D.C.
The United States Tax Court
• Created by Congress in 1969.
• The Tax Court hears civil cases involving disputes
over the application of the tax laws.
• Most cases are generated out of the IRS
• Its decisions may be appealed to the federal courts
of appeals.
The Court of Appeals for the
Armed Forces
• This court is a civilian tribunal, a court operating
as part of the judicial branch, entirely separate
from the military establishment.
• The court reviews the more serious convictions of
members of the armed forces at a court-martial,
or trial involving military law.
The Court of Appeals for
Veterans Claims
• The Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims hears
cases in which individuals claim that the Department
of Veterans Affairs has denied or otherwise
mishandled valid claims for veterans’ benefits
Military Commissions
• Created by President Bush by executive order in 2003
to try “enemy combatants” or suspected terrorists
from Iraq and Afghanistan
• Commissions are comprised of military officers
• Supreme Court ruled that Bush had overstepped his
bounds (Hamdan v. Rumsfeld 2006)
• Military Commissions Act of 2006 (military tribunals)
The Litmus Test
• President nominates a Supreme Court judge
• Senate judiciary committee questions the judge on
political issues to find out how liberal or how
conservative the judge is