Deck 15: The Judiciary Conclusion

Question 1

Intermediate federal courts that are above the district courts and below the Supreme Court are known as

A) common law courts.
B) precedents.
C) courts of appeals.
D) civil suits.
E) appeals.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

When a court declares that a law passed by Congress and acts of executive branch are unconstitutional, it is exercising ________.

A) judicial restraint
B) judicial review
C) judicial ordinance
D) judicial oversight
E) judicial impact

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In _________, the government prosecutes an individual for breaking the law.

A) appeals
B) civil suits
C) class action lawsuits
D) criminal cases
E) probate court

Answer 3

D

Question 4

_________ is where the courts have to determine what Congress meant by a statute. (For example, is discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy included in the prohibition on sex discrimination in the Civil Rights Act of 1964?)

A) Constitutional interpretation
B) Equity
C) Judicial review
D) Plain meaning
E) Statutory interpretation

Question 5

The lawful authority of a court to hear a case is its ________.

A) order
B) common law
C) standing
D) jurisdiction
E) trial

Question 6

_________ established the district courts and the circuit courts of appeal in the federal court system.

A) Article III
B) The Federal Court Act
C) The Judiciary Act of 1789
D) The Eleventh Amendment
E) The Fourteenth Amendment

Question 7

The Supreme Court granted itself the power of judicial review in the case of

A) Brown v. Board of Education.
B) Gibbons v. Ogden.
C) Marbury v. Madison.
D) McCulloch v. Maryland.
E) Roe v. Wade.

Question 8

_________ are federal trial courts at the bottom of the federal judicial hierarchy.

A) District courts
B) Civil suit
C) Jurisdiction
D) Common law
E) Appeal

Question 9

English judges created the _______ to fill in gaps in statutory law.

A) common law
B) civil code
C) Constitution
D) criminal law
E) British codes

Question 10

A decision made by an entire Court of Appeals circuit is called a ________decision.

A) per curiam
B) amicus
C) majority
D) en banc
E) concurring

Question 11

What was it called when an individual was subject to drowning or burning to see if they were innocent?

A) Certiorari
B) Habeas corpus
C) judicial review
D) trial by jury
E) trial by ordeal

Question 12

British royal judges developed the practice of reaching decisions based on _________, or the previous decisions of other royal judges.

A) discovery
B) equity
C) judicial activism
D) judicial restraint
E) precedents

Question 13

When a case is appealed, the court of appeals decides the case solely based upon __________.

A) questions of fact
B) questions of international law
C) questions of law
D) questions of importance
E) questions of standing

Question 14

Policies that support greater equality, often by granting racial or gender preferences in hiring, education, or contracting, are known as ___________.

A) civil rights
B) affirmative action
C) civil liberties
D) gender action
E) preference action

Question 15

What step did both Jennifer Gratz and Barbara Grutter take after getting rejected from admission to the University of Michigan?

A) They appealed to the board of trustees.
B) They contacted the local newspaper.
C) They sued the school.
D) They wrote their congressional representative.
E) They did all of these.

Question 16

_________ of the Constitution establishes the judicial branch of government.

A) Article I
B) Article II
C) Article III
D) Article IV
E) Article V

Question 17

________ or "legislative courts," are courts whose purpose is to help Congress perform its constitutional duties .

A) Article I
B) Article III
C) Article II
D) Article IV
E) Article V

Question 18

The overwhelming majority of federal cases are resolved in the ________.

A) appeals courts
B) Supreme Court
C) district courts
D) Article I courts
E) administrative courts

Question 19

A confrontational legal process under which each party presents its version of events is referred to as a(n)

A) adversary process.
B) deposition.
C) disposition.
D) grand jury.
E) judicial review.

Question 20

The right to _________, or the right of parties in a dispute to have their case determined by a group of ordinary citizens, dates back in England to the Magna Carta (1215).

A) certiorari
B) habeas corpus
C) judicial review
D) trial by jury
E) trial by ordeal

Question 21

Outside interests can file ________ briefs, stating their concerns in a case.

A) guardian ad litem
B) amicus curiae
C) certiorari
D) tort
E) diem

Question 22

In a criminal trial, if the accused is found guilty the judge determines the sentence based on _______ that depend on the nature of the offense, the number of prior convictions, and several other factors.

A) precedents
B) laws
C) rules
D) guidelines
E) policies

Question 23

The opinion of a court laying out the official position of the court in the case is known as the

A) minority opinion.
B) dissenting opinion.
C) majority opinion.
D) judicial review.
E) appellate jurisdiction.

Question 24

The federal court of appeals has _______, which means that if a losing party from the district appeals, the court must hear the case.

A) contemplative jurisdiction 
B) selective jurisdiction
C) competitive jurisdiction
D) total jurisdiction
E) mandatory jurisdiction

Question 25

When you file a(n) ________, you are asking the Supreme Court to review a lower court decision.

A) petition for a writ of certiorari
B) habeas corpus
C) en banc
D) amicus brief
E) standing motion

Question 26

Once a case is assigned to a judge, the next step in a civil suit is _________, when each side gets access to information relevant to its suit held by the other side.

A) deposition
B) discovery
C) plea bargain
D) reapportionment
E) trial

Question 27

Most of the justices' chambers have joined the ________, which splits the cert petitions among the clerks of the justices.

A) cert pool
B) amicus pool
C) work pool
D) divided pool
E) rule of four

Question 28

If, due to a combination of concurring and dissenting justices, fewer than five justices join the opinion of the Supreme Court, that opinion becomes a(n) _________ rather than a majority opinion.

A) affirming
B) concurring
C) disposing
D) dissenting
E) plurality

Question 29

A lawsuit filed by one person on behalf of that person plus all similarly situated individuals is referred to as a(n)

A) amicus curiae .
B) appeal.
C) class action.
D) plurality action.
E) writ of habeas corpus .

Question 30

Where in the Constitution is the equal protection clause?

A) Article I
B) Article III
C) Article IV
D) Fourteenth Amendment
E) Fifteenth Amendment

Question 31

Under the Constitution, accused criminals in federal courts have a right to indictment by a _________, a specially empanelled jury consisting of between sixteen and twenty-three citizens who determine whether the government has sufficient evidence to charge the suspect with a crime.

A) grand jury
B) judicial review
C) judiciary committee
D) prosecutorial committee
E) supreme jury

Question 32

_________ is an agreement by a criminal defendant to plead guilty in return for a reduced sentence.

A) Criminal case
B) Plea bargain
C) Grand jury
D) Common law
E) Appeal

Question 33

How long does each party get to speak during oral argument at the Supreme Court?

A) 15 minutes
B) 30 minutes
C) 45 minutes
D) 60 minutes
E) 90 minutes

Question 34

Justices who disagree with the result reached by the majority can write a(n) _________ opinion explaining why they believe the Supreme Court's decision was in error.

A) affirming
B) concurring
C) disposing
D) dissenting
E) plurality

Question 35

The majority of lawsuits filed in federal court ________ with a negotiated agreement between the plaintiff and defendant

A) settle out of court
B) go to trial
C) mediate through judges
D) have a bench trial
E) have a jury trial

Question 36

The official in the Justice Department who represents the president in federal court is known as the _________.

A) executive attorney 
B) attorney general
C) courtroom general
D) solicitor general
E) provost

Question 37

The Supreme Court rule that grants review to a case as long as four justices agree to support review is known as _________.

A) system of four
B) rule of four
C) guide of four
D) standard of four
E) grant of four

Question 38

Overall, the Supreme Court grants only about _________ percent of certiorari petitions, leaving the lower court decision as final in all other cases.

A) 1
B) 3
C) 7
D) 15
E) 22

Question 39

_________ are the parties bringing the suit in civil suits often requesting monetary damages to compensate for harms done to them, such as by a broken contract or a defective product.

A) Amicus curiae
B) Appellants
C) Defendants
D) Plaintiffs
E) Respondents

Question 40

Jennifer Gratz and Barbara Grutter claimed that the affirmative action policies at the University of Michigan denied them their right to

A) assemble.
B) "due process."
C) "equal protection of the law."
D) freedom of expression.
E) all of these.

Question 41

Reliance on _______ creates stability in law.

A) precedent
B) rules
C) judicial review
D) judicial restraint
E) judicial activism

Question 42

Because ___________ lost his Supreme Court nomination while being outspoken about his beliefs, nominees for the Supreme Court now tend to dodge these types of questions.

A) Clarence Thomas
B) William Brennan
C) Miguel Estrada
D) Richard Bork
E) John Roberts

Question 43

The idea that judges would not be removed from office due to partisan disagreements is a crucial component of __________.

A) judicial relief
B) judicial power
C) judicial independence
D) judicial expectation
E) judicial exposure

Question 44

Decisions by judges respecting the decisions of other branches or, through the concept of precedent, the decisions of earlier judges, is considered a

A) judicial restraint.
B) judicial activism.
C) dissenting opinion.
D) plurality.
E) concurring opinion.

Question 45

In the Gratz and Grutter cases, the Supreme Court

A) found a constitutional violation in the affirmative action plan of both the law school and the undergraduate university.
B) found a constitutional violation in the law school affirmative action plan.
C) found no constitutional violation.
D) upheld the affirmative action plan as practiced by the law school.
E) upheld the affirmative action plan as practiced by the undergraduate university.

Question 46

In interpreting the law with an extralegal approach, judges often actively engage in _______.

A) policy making
B) judicial review
C) law making
D) judicial restraint
E) procedure making

Question 47

The first African American Supreme Court Justice was _______, who also argued  Brown v. Board of Education  before the court.

A) Medgar Evers
B) Clarence Thomas
C) Marcus Garvey
D) Thurgood Marshall 
E) Martin Luther King, Jr.

Question 48

The Warren Court established a right to ___________ that is not explicitly in the Constitution.

A) petition
B) trial by jury
C) an attorney
D) privacy
E) property

Question 49

The decision in _________ expanded national power in two ways: by granting the national government the right to create a bank through the necessary and proper clause, and by limiting state power by denying the states the authority to tax activities of the national government.

A) Brown v. Board of Education
B) Dred Scott v. Sandford
C) Gibbons v. Ogden
D) Marbury v. Madison
E) McCulloch v. Maryland

Question 50

Following the president's nomination, the _________ conducts hearings on nominees for district court.

A) American Bar Association
B) House of Representatives
C) Senate Judiciary Committee
D) solicitor general
E) Supreme Court

Question 51

An opinion that agrees with the results of the majority opinion (that is, which party wins) but sets out a separate rationale is known as a(n)

A) dissenting opinion.
B) disposing opinion.
C) concurring opinion.
D) affirming opinion.
E) plurality.

Question 52

Following the Civil War, Congress passed and the states ratified the _________ Amendment, which overturned the Dred Scott case by making "all persons born in the United States citizens of the United States." The amendment further prevented states from denying any person due process of law or the equal protection of the laws and from abridging the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.

A) Tenth
B) Twelfth
C) Thirteenth
D) Fourteenth
E) Fifteenth

Question 53

Who nominated Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman justice of the Supreme Court?

A) Bill Clinton
B) Billy Carter
C) George W. Bush
D) Gerald Ford
E) Ronald Reagan

Question 54

Many, if not most, of the Supreme Court justices decide cases with a(n) ______________, basing it on their own preferences.

A) legal approach
B) extralegal approach
C) judicial activism
D) judicial restraint
E) judicial opposition

Question 55

In _________, the Court took an expansive view of national power, declaring that the commerce clause, which granted the national government the authority to regulate commerce "among the several states," would be broadly defined to include not just the shipping of goods across state lines but also the economic activities within a state that concern other states.

A) Brown v. Board of Education
B) Dred Scott v. Sandford
C) Gibbons v. Ogden
D) Marbury v. Madison
E) McCulloch v. Maryland

Question 56

The term "__________" created by Alexander Bickel describes the tension that exists for a representative government when unelected judges have power to strike down laws passed by elected representatives.

A) countermajoritarian difficulty
B) majoritarian difficulty
C) representative difficulty
D) democratic difficulty
E) opposition difficulty

Question 57

In _________, the Supreme Court declared that no black person could be an American citizen and that Congress did not have the authority to regulate slavery in the territories.

A) Brown v. Board of Education
B) Dred Scott v. Sandford
C) Gibbons v. Ogden
D) Marbury v. Madison
E) McCulloch v. Maryland

Question 58

The method of judicial decision making which claims that justices base their decision on legally relevant materials, such as prior court precedents and the plain meaning of the text of the law under consideration, is called ________.

A) the legal approach
B) the extralegal approach
C) judicial restraint
D) judicial activism
E) judicial opposition

Question 59

If the Supreme Court's decision is based on the meaning of a statute, __________ can simply overturn it.

A) the president
B) district courts
C) state courts
D) the Senate
E) Congress

Question 60

_________ refers to judges who go beyond what the law requires and seek to impose their own policy preferences on society through their judicial decisions.

A) Affirmative action
B) Initiative
C) Judicial activism
D) Judicial restraint
E) Judicial review

Question 61

Why are people who initiate lawsuits required to have standing?

Question 62

Explain why the Constitution provides lifetime appointments for all federal judges.

Question 63

Identify and explain how the Constitution divides the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.

Question 64

Based on your understanding, how are federal judges selected? Explain the process.

Question 65

How are court decisions enforced? Would government work better if the courts had the power of enforcement?

Question 66

Explain senatorial courtesy.

Question 67

Summarize the U.S. legal traditions derived from English legal traditions.

Question 68

Explain what occurred when President Ronald Reagan nominated Robert Bork to the Supreme Court. What was the outcome of the situation?

Question 69

Discuss the differences between Article I and Article III courts.

Question 70

Describe the lasting impact of Supreme Court appointments.

Question 71

Discuss the court-packing plan proposed by Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Question 72

Explain the rule of four .

Question 73

Discuss the use of amicus curiae briefs. Who files them, and why is it important?

Question 74

Describe the process of oral argument.

Question 75

Restate what the Constitution says about the organization and powers of the federal judiciary.

Question 76

Is judicial review a problem for democracy? Explain your answer.

Question 77

Why did the Office of the Solicitor General switch positions on the Michigan affirmative action cases between 2000 and 2001?

Question 78

Give an overview of the responsibilities and procedures in courts of appeals.

Question 79

Survey how the Court reaches and issues decisions.

Question 80

Should the federal government be allowed to try to influence a court decision? Explain your answer.