GPOSC 225 1st Edition Lecture 22Outline of Last Lecture I. Sources of Judicial Powera. Federalist 78II. Marbury VS MadisonIII. Structure of the Judiciarya. Method of Appointmentb. Terms of AppointmentIV. Types of Article III Courtsa. Federal District Courtsb. Appellate Courtsc. Supreme CourtV. Federal Court ProcedureOutline of Current Lecture - The Judiciary continuedI. 1795 CaseA. 11th AmendmentII. Supreme Court A. Appellate JurisdictionB. Granting the Writ and Rule of FourC. What factors help the Court determine granting Cert?D. Once a Case has been Accepted:E. Types of opinions:1. Majority2. Concurring3. DissentingF. Constraints on Judge’s Decision Making1. Legal2. Strategic3. AttitudinalCurrent Lecture - The Federal Courts- cont’d1793 Case - justices of the supreme court looked at Article III and ruled that state governments could be sued in federal courts by citizens of another state. This ruling lead quickly to the 11th amendment.11th Amendment - and the doctrine of state sovereign immunity. Says that states get autonomy from lawsuits without their consent except in cases involving the 14th amendment.Supreme Court (SC) - Appellate JurisdictionJustices have almost unlimited discretion to decide which cases to hear via the Judges Bill of 1925. In the petition process, the court receives 6,000-7,000 appeals annually and only accepts approximately 100.most appellants are requesting a writ of certiorari: which means “we wish to be certified” in Latin. It is a certified record requiring a case be brought up from a lower court. Appellants are asking the SC to hear its case, the SC asks the lower court to send all the information up to the SC.The SC either “grants cert” or “denies cert” (you can see a list of cases in the newspaper with “cert granted” or “denied” next to the name)l. Granting the Writ and Rule of Four● The justices decide whether or not to grant write - they vote during Friday conferences after hearing from law clerks.● rule of four: states that if 4 of the 9 vote to grant certiorari the writ is issued and placed on the docket. (placed on the docket: scheduled for a hearing). NOTE: rule of four is a court imposed law, it’s NOT in article III.● Remember: denying cert doesn’t tell us anything about what the court would have ruled had they heard the case.What factors help the Court determine granting Cert?1. Procedurala. A case must be substantial not frivolousb. The case must be real (aka it cannot just offer advisory opinions there must be actual opposing parties.c. The two parties must “show standing”: demonstrate that they have a direct interest in the case. e.g. you can’t go to trial on someone else’s behalf. This is both a way to narrow down cases and restrain judicial overreach.d. Case must be “ripe”: you must exhaust all other avenues of appeal. This is the idea that everything goes through the process in its time (e.g. federal bureaucracy)e. Case cannot be “moot”: when the court cannot resolve it, it has become hypothetical so it is mott. E.g. if you die, the case cannot be resolved for you.f. The SC will not hear cases that i. are just political questions. Well what’s that?1. e.g. War Powers Resolutionii. where legal principles are well established “stare decisis” means to stand by what's been decided. This maintains certainty, stability, uniformity in law and a sense of fairness.g. Finally, a Judge's own personal strategy and opinion on a case may influence whether Cert is granted.i. e.g they may not hear a case because they know there’s a good chance it will be ruled against.Once a Case has been Accepted:1. the counsel files a brief with the court. They also may except an amicus curiae brief.2. Then it is scheduled for oral argument (the attorney gets a few minutes to lay out the case and then is usually peppered with questions by the Justices)3. The conference discussion4. Preliminary Vote5. Assignment for writing the majority opinionTypes of opinions:● Majority Opinion - the most common, written by one and then revised by all of the judges● Concurring opinion - a Judge writes this to say I agree with the outcome of the ruling but I disagree with the majority opinion as to why we conclude this● Dissenting - Written when a Judge doesn’t agree with Majority OpinionConstraints on Judge’s Decision Making1. 1. Legal Model - Judges put personal preferences aside and defer to facts of the case, legal precedent, meaning of the statute, etc.2. Strategic Model - judges seek to achieve policy goals but are subject to constraints; they act strategically to achieve their goals.3. Attitudinal model - decisions can be predicted by a Judge’s policy attitude. Justice is not constrained by the law rather motivated by policy