Chapter 2 The Court System September 5th 2014 2 1 The Third Branch Learning Objectives Understand the constitutional basis for the judicial branch Become familiar with how the other two branches check and control the Explore the differences among the three branches of government Learn about the chief justice s role in the judicial administration Explore the concept of judicial review judiciary Constitutional Basis of The Three Branches Legislative branch Created by Article I of the Constitution at the federal level This branch is responsible for drafting laws Executive branch Created under Article II of the Constitution This is another name for the office of the president and its related agencies Judiciary Created by Article III of the Constitution and by various state constitutions and laws This is the branch of government dedicated to the administration of justice Nomination and Tenure of a Federal Judge Requirements to become a federal judge o Nomination by the president o Confirmation by the Senate The nuclear option majority or 2 3 vote o No other stated qualification in Article III Constitution guarantees that judges are relatively free from political interference by providing them with o Lifetime tenure o Salary that cannot be reduced Differences Among the Three Branches The three branches of government are different as o The judiciary is the only unelected branch of government o They consume different resources in serving the public The entire federal court system consumes less than two tenths of 1 percent of the federal budge o The federal judiciary works in relative anonymity o The judiciary is designed to be the most remote branch from the people Federal judges have life tenure and can be removed from office only through impeachment Judicial Hierarchy Federal judiciary The Supreme Court The district and appellate courts Judicial Administration Administrative Office Responsible for rent payroll budget and other administrative matters relating to the functioning of the federal judiciary Federal Judicial Center Dedicated to conducting research on judicial administration and providing judicial education United States Sentencing Commission USSC Commission created by Congress to explore ways to establish uniformity in federal criminal sentencing Federal judiciaryThe Supreme CourtThe district and appellate courts Role of Justices in Judicial Administration Chief Justice In the U S Supreme Court the representative of the judicial branch to other branches and the administrative head of the judiciary o His vote only counts as one of nine votes on any question before the Associate Justice In the U S Supreme Court one of the eight regular Court members of the Court Judicial Review Power of courts to declare legislative or executive acts unlawful o Power that rests with each of the more than eight hundred federal judges from the trial courts through the appellate courts Marbury V Madison 5 U S 137 1803 established the role of the Supreme Court as the final arbiter of all constitutional questions Judicial Review Marbury v Madison Checking and Controlling the Judiciary The legislative and executive branches play a critical role in checking the judiciary selections o President can control the judiciary by making careful judicial o Power of the president to name federal judges is absolute o President is the primary means of enforcing judicial decisions Cherokee Indian Cases of the 1830 s gold rush Role of Congress in checking the judiciary o Confirms judicial selections o Controls the judiciary through its annual budgetary process o Determines organization of the courts and what kind of cases the courts can hear
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