Deck 3: Courts, Jurisdiction, and Administrative Agencies

Question 1

________ are courts that hear appeals from trial courts, but are not a state's highest court.

A) Intermediate appellate courts
B) Courts of last resort
C) Municipal courts
D) Courts martial

Answer 1

Intermediate appellate courts

Question 2

Describe the role of intermediate appellate courts in a state court system.

Answer 2

Intermediate appellate courts hear appeals from trial courts. They review the trial court record to determine whether there have been any errors at trial that would require reversal or modification of the trial court's decision. Thus, an appellate court reviews either pertinent parts or the whole trial court record from the lower court. No new evidence or testimony is permitted.

Question 3

Describe the evidence or testimony that is considered in the highest court in a state court system.

Answer 3

No new evidence or testimony is heard by the highest court in a state court system. Rather, the parties usually submit pertinent parts of or the entire lower court record for review. The parties also submit legal briefs to the court and are usually granted a brief oral hearing.

Question 4

Describe the function of the highest state court in a state court system.

Question 5

The ________ hears cases brought against the United States.

A) U.S. Supreme Court
B) U.S. Tax Court
C) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D) U.S. District Court

Question 6

The ________ is a special federal court that hears cases that involve federal tax laws.

A) U.S. Supreme Court
B) U.S. Tax Court
C) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D) U.S. District Court

Question 7

A special federal court that hears civil cases arising out of customs and international trade laws of the United States is the ________.

A) U.S. Supreme Court
B) U.S. Court of International Trade
C) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D) U.S. District Court

Question 8

Bagg-O Corp. imports sandwich bags manufactured in Thailand which it then sells to consumers in the United States. The United States Customs and Border Protection Service inspected a shipment of these plastic bags and imposed a customs duty on them. Bagg-O contends that sandwich bags fall into a category of products which, under federal law, can enter into the United States duty-free. If Bagg-O decides to sue the federal government over these duties, the appropriate court to file the lawsuit would be the________.

A) U.S. Supreme Court
B) U.S. Court of International Trade
C) U.S. Tax Court
D) U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

Question 9

Which court would most likely hear an appeal from a verdict by a U.S. Army Court Martial?

A) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
B) U.S. Court of International Trade
C) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D) U.S. District Court

Question 10

Peter is being harassed by bill collectors. His friend Francis tells him that he might want to consider the protections afforded by the federal bankruptcy laws. As such, Peter may be filing a case in which court?

A) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
B) U.S. Court of International Trade
C) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
D) U.S. Bankruptcy Court

Question 11

Bob is a software engineer in California. The FBI considers Bob to be a threat to national security and wishes to conduct covert electronic surveillance on Bob. Before conducting this surveillance, the FBI would probably file a request for a warrant with which court?

A) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
B) U.S. Court of International Trade
C) U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
D) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

Question 12

Mary is an attorney in New York City. Because the FBI considers Mary to be a threat to national security, the FBI applied to a special federal court for a warrant to conduct a physical search of her law office when no one would be around. The application for the warrant was denied. The FBI may appeal the decision to the ________.

A) U.S. Court of Federal Claims
B) U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review
C) U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
D) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

Question 13

The U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is considered to be a "secret court" because ________.

A) the city where it is located is unknown
B) no one knows who appoints the judges on the court
C) the number of judges on the court is top secret
D) its hearings are not open to the public and its decisions are classified

Question 14

After learning that the FBI had sought a warrant to conduct electronic surveillance on him, Bob petitioned the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for a copy of the court file on him. Bob eventually received a copy of his file but found that much of the information in it was either removed or obscured with heavy black ink. This process of removing or obscuring information before releasing it is called ________.

A) redacting
B) contracting
C) protracting
D) subtracting

Question 15

Briefly contrast the procedure that occurs with a case in a U.S. district court with what occurs with a case in a U.S. court of appeals.

Question 16

Describe what is meant by an en banc review in the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals and describe the procedure needed to have one.

Question 17

Mary won a case at the U.S. Court of Appeals. When the case was reviewed by the Supreme Court, only eight judges were present. Four of the judges voted for Mary while the other four voted against her. Which of the following would be the result of this case?

A) The case will be sent to the U.S. Court of Appeals for a review.
B) Mary will win the case, as she had already won at the U.S. Court of Appeals.
C) The case will be reviewed again by the U.S. Supreme Court when all the judges are present.
D) Mary will win, and the case will set a precedent for later cases.

Question 18

Describe the process by which an appellate case gets heard before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Question 19

What is the jurisdiction of the U.S. Supreme Court?

Question 20

Sue, a resident of the state of New York, was visiting her aunt in Iowa. While there, her car was hit by a drunken driver named Jerry, a resident of Iowa. Sue was injured in that accident. Which of the following actions can Sue take in this scenario?

A) Sue can sue Jerry and bring the case to Iowa state court, provided that the dollar amount of the controversy exceeds $75,000.
B) Sue can file a case against Jerry in the New York state court, as she is a resident of that state.
C) Sue can file a case against Jerry only in the Iowa state court, as this is a matter that involves state negligence law.
D) Sue can sue Jerry and bring the case to Iowa federal court, as this is a case that involves diversity of citizenship.

Question 21

Federal courts have ________ jurisdiction.

A) plenary
B) unlimited
C) limited
D) unrestricted

Question 22

Which of these is a basis by which a federal court may have jurisdiction to hear a case?

A) Federal question
B) State question
C) Homogenous citizenship
D) Police powers

Question 23

A federal court may have jurisdiction to hear a case because of which basis?

A) Home-rule question
B) State question
C) Diversity of citizenship
D) Police powers

Question 24

Altonvista Inc., a company based in California, is sued by a plaintiff from the state of Texas. Which of the following statements is true in this scenario?

A) The case must be heard in the California federal court, as this is a subject matter in which federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
B) If the plaintiff chooses to bring the case to the California federal court, it would stay in the federal court.
C) If the plaintiff decides to bring the case to the California federal court, Altonvista Inc. can have the case moved to a California state court.
D) The case can only be heard in a California state court, as the matter is not subject to federal jurisdiction.

Question 25

Bill is trying to sell his house in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to George, who lives in Little Rock, Arkansas. They have a dispute over the terms of the contract, and Bill decides to sue George. Which of the following statements is true in this scenario?

A) The Arkansas state court must hear this case as it has in personam jurisdiction over George.
B) The Arkansas state court has in rem jurisdiction to hear this case.
C) The Oklahoma state court has in rem jurisdiction to hear this case.
D) The Oklahoma state court does not have jurisdiction to hear this case as the defendant is from another state.

Question 26

Jill wins a lawsuit against Terry in Wyoming state court. The court passes a judgment requiring Terry to pay $20,000 to Jill. Soon after the case is settled, Terry moves to Colorado, where she owns a house, and refuses to pay Jill the money. Which of the following is the best course of action for Jill?

A) File a lawsuit against Terry in a Colorado state court to enforce the Wyoming court judgment.
B) File another case against Terry in the Wyoming state court to collect the money against Terry's property.
C) File a case against Terry in Wyoming to force Terry to sell her house in Colorado to pay the money.
D) File a case in the Colorado federal court as this qualifies as a federal question case.

Question 27

New questions as to a court's jurisdiction have arisen due to the advent of ________.

A) the advent of E-commerce and the use of the internet for the conduct of business
B) the growth of the housing market
C) the reduced use of microfilm technology
D) the demise of certain retail chains

Question 28

John, who lives in Chicago, used the website of internet retailer Wikresco, located in Alabama, to purchase some camping supplies. When the goods arrived, John found them defective. What law would John most likely cite if he wanted to sue Wikresco in state court in Chicago?

A) The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act
B) The Administrative Procedures Act
C) The Alabama long-arm statute
D) The Illinois long-arm statute

Question 29

________ are created by the government to enforce regulatory statutes.

A) Municipalities
B) Non-profit organizations
C) Congressional oversight committees
D) Administrative agencies

Question 30

________ refer(s) to the law that governments enact to regulate industries, businesses, and professionals.

A) Municipal codes
B) Stare decisis
C) Codified statutes
D) Administrative law

Question 31

Administrative law is a combination of substantive administrative law and ________.

A) precedent
B) executive orders
C) procedural administrative law
D) stare decisis

Question 32

The Department of Homeland Security, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) are all examples of ________.

A) state law enforcement agencies
B) federal administrative agencies
C) Congressional oversight committees
D) municipal service bureaus

Question 33

________ are created by legislative branches of states to administer state regulatory laws.

A) State administrative agencies
B) Federal bureaus
C) Municipal extension agencies
D) Court administrative offices

Question 34

________ are created by cities, municipalities, and counties to administer local regulatory law.

A) Federal administrative agencies
B) Congressional oversight committees
C) State administrative agencies
D) Local administrative agencies

Question 35

The ________ refer(s) to a federal statute that establishes procedures for federal administrative agencies to follow while conducting their affairs.

A) Administrative Procedure Act
B) Federal Sentencing Guidelines
C) Sarbanes-Oxley Act
D) Executive Orders

Question 36

An administrative law judge's decision is issued in the form of a(n) ________.

A) majority report
B) substantive rule
C) administrative order
D) writ of habeas corpus