Exam 8: The Judiciary

The Supreme Court does not typically hear appeals for cases in which the issue is ________, that is, for cases in which a decision would have no effect for the parties involved in the dispute.

The constitutional requirements of presidential appointment and senatorial advice and consent for federal judges are examples of ________.

What is the legal principle of stare decisis? Why is it important in a common law system? Why is stare decisis somewhat less important in a civil law system? Are federal courts strictly bound by stare decisis? What might be the cost or downside of making stare decisis mandatory? What might be the cost or downside of eliminating the principle of stare decisis?

Which model of judicial behavior reflects the idea that judges decide cases based on their assessments of the likely behavior of other judges, political institutions, and the public?

A/an ________ is an individual or organization that is not party to a given case that submits a brief to a court in support of one side or another in pending litigation.

In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court ________.

Which institution determines which cases will be heard by the Supreme Court?

What is the LEAST democratic branch of the American national government?

How many justices serve on the Supreme Court?

Compare and contrast the legal, attitudinal, and strategic models of judicial behavior. Identify and explain the models. What assumptions do they make about judges' values and preferences? What implications does each set of assumptions have for how judges are understood to decide cases? Which model is, in your opinion, the most accurate representation of the behavior of judges? Explain your answer.

The principle of stare decisis requires that judges make decisions in accordance with ________.

________ is the official status of a litigant who is entitled to have his or her case decided by a court.

In the famous case Roe v. Wade, many followers of the Court believed that the case should have been dismissed because it reached the court after the petitioner was forced to make a decision about keeping or aborting her unborn child. This argument is based on the legal concept of ________.

Chief Justice John Roberts's opinion in Independent Business v. Sebelius was surprising because

In most modern democracies, the judiciary is independent of the elected branches and serves to check the authority of the government. "Independent" in this context means the courts are free to decide cases on their merits, with limited or no pressure from ________.

In Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court invalidated the "separate but equal" doctrine articulated in its 1896 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. The Court's decision in Brown was, therefore, a violation of ________.

Taken together, the set of decisions in Fletcher v. Peck, McCullough v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden ____________.

Which model of judicial behavior reflects the idea that judges decide cases based on the objective application of legal rules to the facts presented to the court?

Which of the following provisions is NOT found in Article III of the U.S. Constitution?

Chief Justice John Roberts commented that a judge's job is like that of a baseball umpire who calls balls and strikes-that is, to decide neutrally based on how one sees the facts. This is an example of the ________ model of judicial behavior.