Chapter 5: The Dual Court System

The United States Judicial System

Federal Court Systems:

Under Article III of the US Constitution the Judicial Branch of government was given the authority to hear cases base of JURISDICTION.

Jurisdiction: Power and authority given to a specific court to hear a case and make proper judgement.

Federal Courts Have Jurisdiction over….

1. Cases in with the US or a state is a party(except between a state and its own citizens)
2. Case that question the interpretation of the constitution or federal law itself.
3. Diversity of Citizenship cases; actions between citizens of different states in excess of $50,000.
4. Cases regarding the seas, patent-rights, copyrights, and bankruptcy.

Three Tiers of the Federal Court System:

1. US District Courts:
   1. Have ORIGINAL JURISDICTION– to hear federal cases for the first time,
   2. Considered the TRIAL COURTS for criminal and civil actions in the federal system.
   3. There is at least ONE DISTRICT COURT in each state which based on the population size of the state. There are 3 district courts in New York, Total of 95 District Courts in the US.
2. US States Court of Appeals “The Intermediate Courts”:
   1. Has APPELLATE JURISDICTION in the federal court system- it hears cases on appeal from the US DISTRICT COURTS.
   2. Federal Appellate Circuit Court System divided into 13 Circuit courts that are arranged geographically throughout the US. Each CIRCUIT has one Circuit Court of Appeals and several DISTRICT COURTS.
   3. Court of Appeal cases are heard by a panel of 3 judges. There is NO review trial, no witnesses, no new evidence and no juries. ONLY questions of the law can be reviewed and appealed for each case.
3. US Supreme Court: “The Highest Court In the Land”
   1. US SUPREME COURT has both APPELLATE AND ORIGINAL JURISDICTION in hearing cases.
   2. ITs ORIGINAL JURISDICTION deals primarily with cases involving ambassadors, public officials, and cases which involve a state.
   3. Its APPELLATE JURISDICTION is its main function, hearing cases that question the CONSTITUTIONALITY OF THE LAW.
   4. How many justices are appointed to the United States Supreme Court?
      • There are 9 Justices, including one Chief Justice.
        1. Chief Justice: John G Roberts Jr. (G.W. Bush)
        2. Associate Justice: Antonin Scalia (Reagan)
        3. Associate Justice: Anthony M. Kennedy (Reagan)
        4. Associate Justice: Clarence Thomas (G.H.W. Bush)
        5. Associate Justice: Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Clinton)
        6. Associate Justice: Stephen G. Beyer (Clinton)
        7. Associate Justice: Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. (G.W. Bush)
        8. Associate Justice: Sonia Sotomayor (Obama)
        9. Associate Justice: Elena Kagan (Obama)

State Court Systems: 

• State court systems structure will vary in every state, for example, New York State’s highest court is the intermediate appellate court.

1. Structure of the State Court System
   1. Local Trial Courts
      • Limited Jurisdiction Court: have the authority to only hear minor cases, misdemeanor, and civil actions involving small amounts of money.
        • purpose of the local trial courts is to settle petty offenses (Traffic courts, police courts, municipal courts)
   2. General Trial Courts
      • General Jurisdiction Courts:  jurisdiction over all cases involving major crimes, felonies, and crimes involving large amounts of money.
        • Typically known as county courts.
          • Riverhead Criminal Court Building hears these cases of general jurisdiction.
   3. Special Courts
      • Courts specially designed to hear cases such as family or domestic relations, property law, juvenile court issues.
        • Jurisdiction for these courts are limited to the courts specialization.
   4. Intermediate Appellate Courts\
      • Generally have appellate jurisdiction from the states lower court system only, although special cases may be heard for the first time in Appellate court.
      • Appellate court only review cases in which the law is in question, not the facts of the case itself.
        • Appellate judges only hear oral arguments from attorneys in cases in which there is evidence that a judge or jury has been prejudiced in some way.