Federal Courts and Jurisdiction Outline | ID 73996 | St. Louis University School of Law

FEDERAL COURTS

I.                   The Federal Court System: Structure and Themes

II.                Justiciability and the Judicial Function
A. Advisory opinions
B. Standing
C. Ripeness
D. Mootness
E. Political Question

III.             Congressional Control of Federal Jurisdiction
A.    Supreme Court
B.     Inferior Courts
C.     Control of Decision-making

IV.             Allocation of Article III Matters to Non-Article III Courts
A.    Assignment of Non-Article III Matters to Article III Courts

V.                  Arising Under Jurisdiction

VI.               Diversity

VII.    Supplemental and Removal Jurisdiction

VIII. Review of Lower Court and State Court Decisions

IX.             Eleventh Amendment and State Sovereign Immunity

X.                Section 1983

I.                   THE FEDERAL COURT SYSTEM: STRUCTURE AND THEMES

What is Judicial Power?
-Judicial Power is the power to interpret the law as opposed to creating it or executing it. It is a passive power, as the adversarial parties are the ones who have to bring it to the court.
What are the Characteristics of a Case?
-A case is comprised of two or more parties who oppose each other. It is an adversarial relationship.

Article III, Section 1: The judicial Power of the US shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their services a Compensation which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
Section 2: The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;–to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public ministers and Consuls;–to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;–to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;–to Controversies between two or more States;–between a State and Citizens of another State;–between Citizens of different States;–between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.
In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.
The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.

Pre-Constitution, the Articles of Confederation gave too much power in the states, not enough in federal. The Founders wanted a stronger national government. The Constitution allows the federal government to regulate people.   Articles of Confederation tried to regulate the states – the Constitution could have done this and then relied on the states to regulate the people, but instead, it does the opposite, regulates the people rather than the states. The could not necessarily rely on the states to regulate the people, and sometimes the states do not agree on national policies.

Article III establishes 5 main things related to judiciary:
Creates Federal Judicial Power
Creates one Supreme Court
Creates principle of independent federal judiciary
Extends judicial power to nine classes of cases or controversies
Divides power between original and app

olve a state as a party. In all other cases, the Supreme Court’s power is appellate, although that appellate power extends to law and to fact, which suggests that the Supreme Court might have the power to consider cases on appeal de novo.

Judicial Supremacy = judicial branch is the final authority on what at least some amendments of the constitution mean. This sets up judicial supremacy = tyranny of the majority.
Countermajoritarian Problem = we are a country that believes that the will of the majority should govern. BUT, we recognize that there are times that the majority can overstep and press the minority. To help this, we have the judicial branch.
Marbury framed the way we view Article III and federal court jurisdiction. The Supreme Court established five important principles: 1. the federal judiciary had the power to review federal executive action; 2. some types of issues were not reviewable by the federal courts (ie, political questions and cases where there was no standing); 3. Article III creates a ceiling on federal court jurisdiction, and Congress may not extend the jurisdiction past that; 4. the federal courts had the power to declare federal statutes unconstitutional; and 5. the federal courts are the authoritative interpreters of the meaning of the Constitution.

Ashwander – the Court will avoid constitutional decisions or limit scope of decision if there are non-Constitutional grounds for the decision (avoidance doctrine), where the record is inadequate for effective judicial review, or where a federal issue is not properly presented.