The Supreme Court
The total number of justices that sit on the Supreme Court.
What is 9 justices?
The process of a higher court reviewing the decision of a lower court.
What is Appellate?
The term meaning "assumed true until proved otherwise."
What is Presumed?
The required agreement from the justices for the Supreme Court to take a case.
What is: if 4 out of the 9 justices agree to take the case?
The ultimate power the Supreme Court has.
What is Judicial Review?
The term length for a Supreme Court Justice.
What is life (if good conduct)?
What happens when the Supreme Court has an even split (4-4) in voting on a case.
What is the original decision of the case still stands?
The term for making something legally invalid.
What is Nullify?
In this type of case, the penalty would be some amount of money.
What is a civil case?
The areas where the Supreme Court has original jurisdiction.
What is: The Constitution is specifically broken, Federal Statutes, or Admiralty/Maritime Law (Ocean Laws)?
The name of the current Chief Justice.
Who is John G Roberts?
The burden of proof required in a civil case to determine guilt.
What is "preponderance of evidence" (most likely than not - 50%)?
The practice of using earlier judicial rulings as a basis for deciding cases.
What is Stare Decisis?
The term for an opinion that agrees with the majority decision but is written for a different reason.
What is a Concurrent Opinion?
The term that means "in compliance with the Constitution."
What is Constitutional?
The general qualifications justices have, since there are no Constitutional ones.
What is some sort of legal background (like serving as a clerk or being a judge)?
The burden of proof required in a criminal case to declare someone guilty.
What is "beyond a reasonable doubt" (about 95%)?
The term for an order a higher court issues to a lower court to obtain the records of the lower court in a particular case.
What is a Writ of Certiorari?
The type of opinion written by the minority of the justices who disagree with the decision.
What is a Dissenting Opinion?
The authority to hear a case for the first time.
What is Original Jurisdiction?
The presumption made about a person accused of a crime in the American justice system.
What is innocent until proven guilty?
The difference in penalty between a civil case and a criminal case.
What is: a civil case has a penalty of money, and a criminal case has a penalty of being guilty (like a life sentence)?
The term for the opinion of the court that the majority of the justices side with.
What is Unanimous Opinion?
The difference in the required burden of proof between a civil case and a criminal case.
What is: a civil case requires "preponderance of evidence" and a criminal case requires "beyond a reasonable doubt"?
This power allows the Supreme Court to review any local, state, or federal law.
What is Judicial Review?