CCJS234 Chapter 2 Structure of the U S Court System Federalism and Dual Court System Jurisdiction Federalism a union of states that granted power to the federal government over national matters while maintaining their separate existence and power over local matters The authority given by law to a court to try cases ad rule on legal matters within a particular geographic area and or over certain types of legal cases The power of a court to hear and decide a case Geographical Jurisdiction and Venue The cases that courts are empowered to adjudicate are limited to disputes that occur within specified territorial boundaries the land within these boundaries are known as being in the courts geographical jurisdiction Federal Non Article III Courts tax courts bankruptcy courts social security agency etc United States District Courts trial courts of original jurisdiction over federal cases United States Court of Appeals mandatory appellate jurisdiction over the decisions of the U S District Courts U S Supreme Court State State Minor Trial Courts municipal magisterial State Major Trial Courts Superior Courts of Common Pleas District Courts felonies and major civil cases State Intermediate Appellate Courts mandatory appellate jurisdiction over decisions by the state s major trial courts State High Courts of Last Resort mandatory and discretionary appellate jurisdiction over decisions rendered by lower state courts U S Supreme Court Venue the particular county or geographical area in which a court with jurisdiction may hear and determine a case Some larger states are divided into east west north south central etc Granting a motion for change of venue o Such prejudice prevails in the county where the case is to be tried that the defendant cannot obtain a fair and impartial trial there o Another location is much more convenient for the parties and witnesses than the intended place of trial and the interests of justice require a transfer of location Hierarchical Jurisdiction and Court Structure Most court systems follow courts of limited jurisdiction courts of general jurisdiction intermediate courts of appeal courts of last resort Trial Courts and Original Jurisdiction Original Jurisdiction court has the power to hear a case for the first time trial court Litigants parties involved in the specific case Prosecution files the case Defendant defends the case Can be with without a jury Legal Decisions made by rule of law Factual Decisions made by tier of the fact o In a trial with a jury the jury is the trier of fact responsible for making factual findings as to whether the defendant is guilty o Bench Trial no jury judge acts as the tier of the fact Subject Matter Jurisdiction concerned with the type of case a court hears A perquisite to a court hearing the case Special Limited Subject Matter Jurisdiction only hears specialized cases General Subject Matter courts of original jurisdiction having the power to adjudicate all types of disputes not specifically delegated to a court of limited jurisdiction Appellate Courts and Appellate Jurisdiction Appellate Jurisdiction the power to review decisions originally made by a court that exercised original jurisdiction over a given case Petitioner Appellant the party bringing an appeal o Argues that an error was made by the court below not every error is grounds for appeal o For an appeal to be successful there must be a prejudicial error The error must have been such that it could have affected the outcome of the case Harmless errors errors that would not affect the outcome of a case Respondent Appellee the party responding to the appeal Intermediate Courts of Appeals comprised of an uneven number f judges who hear and decide an appeal as a panel o Judges review the record of the lower court and the merits of the case both written and oral arguments of the attorneys o Can decide to affirm or reverse o If reversed can remand the case send back to lower court o Some states do not have these courts so instead the state has a state court of last resort Highest courts in a court system s hierarchical structure every state and federal system has one Supreme Court Nature of Mandatory and Discretionary Appellate Jurisdiction Appeal of right an appellate court is required by law to hear an appeal of a certain type of case Mandatory Appellate Jurisdiction when this right exists Any appeal of right must be exercised by the appealing party within a statutorily prescribed period of time typically ten or thirty days depending on the law The party seeking review of a lower court s decision asks the appellate court to exercise its discretionary appellate jurisdiction by filing a petition for a writ of certiorari and a formal brief that sets forth the reason why the court should accept jurisdiction Writ of Certiorari an order compelling the lower court to produce the record from the proceedings below Concurrent and Exclusive Jurisdiction Concurrent Jurisdiction exists when both the state and federal courts have jurisdiction over a particular case o Can also exist when two courts within the same court system have original jurisdiction over the same matter o Most federal jurisdiction is concurrent with state courts o Parties can decide whether to file suit in the state or federal court Exclusive Jurisdiction these actions must be brought in federal court Federal Courts Federal District Courts Trial level court for the federal court system All district judges are appointed for life by the president with advice and consent from the Senate excluding territorial courts More than 678 district court judges Usually only one judge is required to hear and decide on a case Each court has one or more U S Magistrate judges o Appointed for 8 year terms by district court judges and required to be members of the bar o May issue search warrants hear and determine certain kinds of pretrial matters conduct preliminary and other hearings and submit proposed findings and recommendations on motions for the court s approval o Have power to conduct misdemeanor trials with the defendant s consent and conduct trials in civil cases with the consent of the parties involved o Federal Magistrates Act 1968 expands the services of these Federal Circuit Court of Appeals judges Empowered to review all final decisions and certain interlocutory decisions of district courts Have the power to review and enforce orders of many federal administrative bodies Their decisions are finals except they are subject to