The early Americans were determined to build a stronger country, without royal families or wealthy people having a different set of laws than the average and poor people did. To be sure that everyone is treated equally before the law, the US has a legal system with local, state, regional, and national courts.
Because the US Courts have made a lot of very unusual decisions recently, We’re going to review some court information. It is a complex system designed to balance power in the government. Some judges are appointed, some are elected. It matters a great deal who is in positions as judges of laws. Let’s look it over, and get informed before we vote on anyone!
The U.S. Constitution doesn’t state how many justices should sit on the Supreme Court. In fact, the office of Chief Justice only exists because it’s mentioned in the Constitution Senate rules for impeachment (“When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside...”).
Congress sets the size of the Supreme Court. George Washington signed the Judiciary Act of 1789 into law, setting the number of Supreme Court justices at six.
Supreme Court justices in those early days also sat on federal circuit courts (there were 13 in 1789). Those circuit courts had three judges: one district court judge from the state and two Supreme Court justices.
“The justices had to spend almost the entire year traveling,” says Maeva Marcus, a research professor at the George Washington University Law School and director of its Institute for Constitutional History. “And the traveling conditions were horrendous.”
The Judiciary Act of 1789 divided the circuit courts into three regions: Eastern, Middle and Southern. The first Supreme Court had six justices so that two of them could preside in each of the three regions. History.com
Map of current US Federal Circuit Courts
Here’s how the courts are set up, and how they work: USCOURTS.GOV
Court Role and Structure
Federal courts hear cases involving the constitutionality of a law, cases involving the laws and treaties of the U.S. ambassadors and public ministers, disputes between two or more states, admiralty law, also known as maritime law, and bankruptcy cases.
The federal judiciary operates separately from the executive (president) and legislative (congress) branches, but often works with them as the Constitution requires. Federal laws are passed by Congress and signed by the President. The judicial branch decides the constitutionality of federal laws and resolves disputes about federal laws. Judges depend on our government’s executive branch to enforce court decisions.
Courts decide what really happened and what should be done about it. They decide whether a person committed a crime and what the punishment should be. They also provide a peaceful way to decide private disputes that people can’t resolve themselves. Depending on the dispute or crime, some cases end up in the federal courts and some end up in state courts. Learn more about the different types of federal courts.
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States. Article III of the U.S. Constitution created the Supreme Court and authorized Congress to pass laws establishing a system of lower courts. In the federal court system’s present form, 94 district level trial courts and 13 courts of appeals sit below the Supreme Court. Learn more about the Supreme Court.
Who decides how many Justices are on the Court? Have there always been nine?
The Constitution places the power to determine the number of Justices in the hands of Congress. The first Judiciary Act, passed in 1789, set the number of Justices at six, one Chief Justice and five Associates. Over the years Congress has passed various acts to change this number, fluctuating from a low of five to a high of ten. The Judiciary Act of 1869 set the number of Justices at nine. Supreme Court.gov
Courts of Appeals
There are 13 appellate courts that sit below the U.S. Supreme Court, and they are called the U.S. Courts of Appeals. The 94 federal judicial districts are organized into 12 regional circuits, each of which has a court of appeals. The appellate court’s task is to determine whether or not the law was applied correctly in the trial court. Appeals courts consist of three judges and do not use a jury.
A court of appeals hears challenges to district court decisions from courts located within its circuit, as well as appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies.
In addition, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has nationwide jurisdiction to hear appeals in specialized cases, such as those involving patent laws, and cases decided by the U.S. Court of International Trade and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
Learn more about the courts of appeals.
Bankruptcy Appellate Panels
Bankruptcy Appellate Panels (BAPs) are 3-judge panels authorized to hear appeals of bankruptcy court decisions. These panels are a unit of the federal courts of appeals, and must be established by that circuit.
Five circuits have established panels: First Circuit, Sixth Circuit, Eighth Circuit, Ninth Circuit, and Tenth Circuit.
District Courts
The nation’s 94 district or trial courts are called U.S. District Courts. District courts resolve disputes by determining the facts and applying legal principles to decide who is right.
Bankruptcy Courts
Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases involving personal, business, or farm bankruptcy. This means a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in state court. Through the bankruptcy process, individuals or businesses that can no longer pay their creditors may either seek a court-supervised liquidation of their assets, or they may reorganize their financial affairs and work out a plan to pay their debts.
Article I Courts
Congress created several Article I, or legislative courts, that do not have full judicial power. Judicial power is the authority to be the final decider in all questions of Constitutional law, all questions of federal law and to hear claims at the core of habeas corpus issues. Article I Courts are: