Chapter Overview

The Legal System

• Within what broad categories of law do cases arise?
• How is the U.S. court system structured?

Federal Jurisdiction

• What is the importance of the federal court system?
• What factors play a role in the appointment of federal judges?

The Power of the Supreme Court: Judicial Review

• What is the basis of the Supreme Court’s power of judicial review?
• How does the power of judicial review make the Supreme Court a lawmaking body?
• How does a case reach the Supreme Court? What shapes the flow of cases through the Supreme Court?
• Once accepted, how does a case proceed?
• What factors influence the judicial philosophy of the Supreme Court?

Judicial Power and Politics.

• How has the power of the federal courts been limited throughout much of American history?
• How have the role and power of the federal courts been transformed over the last fifty years?