Question 1

Which of the following statements concerning legislative courts is false?

Accepted Answer

A)  These courts are created by Congress, based in their Article I powers, not their Article III powers. 
B)  Judges on legislative courts do not have lifetime tenure. 
C)  Legislative court judges cannot have their salary reduced by Congress. 
D)  Legislative courts specialize in certain types of cases. 
E)  Legislative courts are less independent than the courts established under Article III. 
A)  These courts are created by Congress, based in their Article I powers, not their Article III powers. 
B)  Judges on legislative courts do not have lifetime tenure. 
C)  Legislative court judges cannot have their salary reduced by Congress. 
D)  Legislative courts specialize in certain types of cases. 
E)  Legislative courts are less independent than the courts established under Article III.

Question 2

Under normal rules of oral argument, each lawyer has ______ to present his or her case before the Supreme Court.

Accepted Answer

A)  thirty minutes 
B)  an hour 
C)  ninety minutes 
D)  two hours 
E)  unlimited time 
A)  thirty minutes 
B)  an hour 
C)  ninety minutes 
D)  two hours 
E)  unlimited time

Question 3

The doctrine of stare decisis compels judges to use precedents to decide current cases.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 4

When the Supreme Court refuses to review a lower-court decision, announcing this decision through a brief unsigned opinion, it is called a(n)______ opinion.

Accepted Answer

A)  per curiam 
B)  ex parte 
C)  concurrence 
D)  amicus curiae 
E)  ex post facto 
A)  per curiam 
B)  ex parte 
C)  concurrence 
D)  amicus curiae 
E)  ex post facto

Question 5

Which of the following statements about the U.S. Courts of Appeals is incorrect?

Accepted Answer

A)  The appeals courts were created by Congress, not by the Constitution. 
B)  The appeals courts are able to hear all cases involving federal law, but not constitutional law. 
C)  About 20 percent of federal cases are heard by the appeals courts. 
D)  There are more than ten appeals courts in the United States. 
E)  Except for cases selected for review by the Supreme Court, decisions made by an appeals court are final. 
A)  The appeals courts were created by Congress, not by the Constitution. 
B)  The appeals courts are able to hear all cases involving federal law, but not constitutional law. 
C)  About 20 percent of federal cases are heard by the appeals courts. 
D)  There are more than ten appeals courts in the United States. 
E)  Except for cases selected for review by the Supreme Court, decisions made by an appeals court are final.

Question 6

Since the New Deal, the majority of litigation in the United States has been found in federal courts.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 7

A "certiorari pool" describes the

Accepted Answer

A)  computerized lottery system by which the Supreme Court selects its cases each year. 
B)  practice by which Supreme Court law clerks work together to evaluate each petition. 
C)  method used to appoint the chief justice. 
D)  nickname for the water fountain in the courtyard of the Supreme Court building. 
E)  pool of applicants seeking appointment to the federal judiciary. 
A)  computerized lottery system by which the Supreme Court selects its cases each year. 
B)  practice by which Supreme Court law clerks work together to evaluate each petition. 
C)  method used to appoint the chief justice. 
D)  nickname for the water fountain in the courtyard of the Supreme Court building. 
E)  pool of applicants seeking appointment to the federal judiciary.

Question 8

A writ of habeas corpus declares that

Accepted Answer

A)  the government must show a legal cause for holding someone in detention. 
B)  the government cannot send a defendant to stand trial in a geographically distant jurisdiction. 
C)  a defendant in a felony trial must receive assistance from legal counsel. 
D)  capital punishment can be neither cruel nor unusual. 
E)  the government cannot search premises without a warrant issued by a judge. 
A)  the government must show a legal cause for holding someone in detention. 
B)  the government cannot send a defendant to stand trial in a geographically distant jurisdiction. 
C)  a defendant in a felony trial must receive assistance from legal counsel. 
D)  capital punishment can be neither cruel nor unusual. 
E)  the government cannot search premises without a warrant issued by a judge.

Question 9

Which of the following is not a traditional limitation on the power of the federal courts?

Accepted Answer

A)  strict rules of standing 
B)  the ability of Congress to reduce federal judges' salaries 
C)  the inability of the courts to offer relief to whole classes of people 
D)  the inability of the courts to enforce their own decisions 
E)  the inability of the courts to act on their own initiative 
A)  strict rules of standing 
B)  the ability of Congress to reduce federal judges' salaries 
C)  the inability of the courts to offer relief to whole classes of people 
D)  the inability of the courts to enforce their own decisions 
E)  the inability of the courts to act on their own initiative

Question 10

Which of the following was not part of the Supreme Court's ruling in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld?

Accepted Answer

A)  A U.S. citizen could be declared an enemy combatant. 
B)  All persons accused of being terrorists had the right to a lawyer. 
C)  Persons the president designates as enemy combatants do not have to be granted an opportunity to rebut those charges. 
D)  The president could order that an enemy combatant be held in federal detention. 
E)  Presidential actions were subject to judicial scrutiny. 
A)  A U.S. citizen could be declared an enemy combatant. 
B)  All persons accused of being terrorists had the right to a lawyer. 
C)  Persons the president designates as enemy combatants do not have to be granted an opportunity to rebut those charges. 
D)  The president could order that an enemy combatant be held in federal detention. 
E)  Presidential actions were subject to judicial scrutiny.

Question 11

What did the framers call the "least dangerous branch"?

Accepted Answer

A)  the Senate 
B)  the Supreme Court 
C)  the system of state courts 
D)  the president 
E)  the bureaucracy 
A)  the Senate 
B)  the Supreme Court 
C)  the system of state courts 
D)  the president 
E)  the bureaucracy

Question 12

Earl Warren is known as a judicial activist.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 13

The jurisdiction of each federal court is derived from

Accepted Answer

A)  the Constitution and federal law. 
B)  the Supreme Court. 
C)  state laws. 
D)  The federal courts decide their own jurisdictions. 
E)  the president. 
A)  the Constitution and federal law. 
B)  the Supreme Court. 
C)  state laws. 
D)  The federal courts decide their own jurisdictions. 
E)  the president.

Question 14

The power of the Supreme Court to review state actions and legislation comes from

Accepted Answer

A)  the judicial review clause of Article III. 
B)  the supremacy clause of Article VI. 
C)  the Tenth Amendment. 
D)  Marbury v. Madison. 
E)  Congress. 
A)  the judicial review clause of Article III. 
B)  the supremacy clause of Article VI. 
C)  the Tenth Amendment. 
D)  Marbury v. Madison. 
E)  Congress.

Question 15

Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called

Accepted Answer

A)  grand juries. 
B)  district courts. 
C)  appellate courts. 
D)  administrative courts. 
E)  civil courts. 
A)  grand juries. 
B)  district courts. 
C)  appellate courts. 
D)  administrative courts. 
E)  civil courts.

Question 16

Dissenting opinions can be signed by only the chief justice or the most senior dissenting justice.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

The party that brings a complaint in court is called the ______, and the one against whom the complaint is brought is called the ______.

Accepted Answer

A)  defendant; plaintiff 
B)  plaintiff; precedent 
C)  plaintiff; defendant 
D)  litigator; juror 
E)  defendant; litigator 
A)  defendant; plaintiff 
B)  plaintiff; precedent 
C)  plaintiff; defendant 
D)  litigator; juror 
E)  defendant; litigator

Question 18

Each of the following has been a method by which the federal courts have expanded their power except

Accepted Answer

A)  liberalizing the concept of standing. 
B)  broadening the scope of relief from individuals to entire groups. 
C)  narrowing the discretionary authority of the president over foreign affairs and diplomacy. 
D)  holding onto jurisdiction over a case until the court's decision has been carried out. 
E)  taking a more active role in hearing cases that would generally be considered legislative matters. 
A)  liberalizing the concept of standing. 
B)  broadening the scope of relief from individuals to entire groups. 
C)  narrowing the discretionary authority of the president over foreign affairs and diplomacy. 
D)  holding onto jurisdiction over a case until the court's decision has been carried out. 
E)  taking a more active role in hearing cases that would generally be considered legislative matters.

Question 19

Which of the following was not a case involving the Supreme Court overturning a state law?

Accepted Answer

A)  Marbury v. Madison 
B)  Brown v. Board of Education 
C)  Griswold v. Connecticut 
D)  Loving v. Virginia 
E)  Brandenburg v. Ohio 
A)  Marbury v. Madison 
B)  Brown v. Board of Education 
C)  Griswold v. Connecticut 
D)  Loving v. Virginia 
E)  Brandenburg v. Ohio

Question 20

The issue of employer liability for employee injuries sustained at work illustrates that

Accepted Answer

A)  there are certain areas of law that courts are not allowed to rule on. 
B)  civil laws can only be passed through state legislatures and cannot be constructed through judicial decisions. 
C)  many areas of civil law have been constructed by judicial messages to other judges rather than by laws passed by legislatures. 
D)  individuals need not have standing to sue in federal court. 
E)  mootness is not an important consideration in civil law cases. 
A)  there are certain areas of law that courts are not allowed to rule on. 
B)  civil laws can only be passed through state legislatures and cannot be constructed through judicial decisions. 
C)  many areas of civil law have been constructed by judicial messages to other judges rather than by laws passed by legislatures. 
D)  individuals need not have standing to sue in federal court. 
E)  mootness is not an important consideration in civil law cases.

Which of the following statements concerning legislative courts is false?

Under normal rules of oral argument, each lawyer has ______ to present his or her case before the Supreme Court.

The doctrine of stare decisis compels judges to use precedents to decide current cases.

When the Supreme Court refuses to review a lower-court decision, announcing this decision through a brief unsigned opinion, it is called a(n)______ opinion.

Which of the following statements about the U.S. Courts of Appeals is incorrect?

Since the New Deal, the majority of litigation in the United States has been found in federal courts.

A "certiorari pool" describes the

A writ of habeas corpus declares that

Which of the following is not a traditional limitation on the power of the federal courts?

Which of the following was not part of the Supreme Court's ruling in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld?

What did the framers call the "least dangerous branch"?

Earl Warren is known as a judicial activist.

The jurisdiction of each federal court is derived from

The power of the Supreme Court to review state actions and legislation comes from

Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called

Dissenting opinions can be signed by only the chief justice or the most senior dissenting justice.

The party that brings a complaint in court is called the , and the one against whom the complaint is brought is called the .

Each of the following has been a method by which the federal courts have expanded their power except

Which of the following was not a case involving the Supreme Court overturning a state law?

The issue of employer liability for employee injuries sustained at work illustrates that

American Political Culture

The Founding and the Constitution

Federalism

Civil Liberties

Civil Rights

Public Opinion

The Media

Political Participation and Voting

Political Parties

Campaigns and Elections

Groups and Interests

Congress

The Presidency

Bureaucracy in a Democracy

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Exam 15: The Federal Courts

Which of the following statements concerning legislative courts is false?

Under normal rules of oral argument, each lawyer has ______ to present his or her case before the Supreme Court.

The doctrine of stare decisis compels judges to use precedents to decide current cases.

When the Supreme Court refuses to review a lower-court decision, announcing this decision through a brief unsigned opinion, it is called a(n)______ opinion.

Which of the following statements about the U.S. Courts of Appeals is incorrect?

Since the New Deal, the majority of litigation in the United States has been found in federal courts.

A "certiorari pool" describes the

A writ of habeas corpus declares that

Which of the following is not a traditional limitation on the power of the federal courts?

Which of the following was not part of the Supreme Court's ruling in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld?

What did the framers call the "least dangerous branch"?

Earl Warren is known as a judicial activist.

The jurisdiction of each federal court is derived from

The power of the Supreme Court to review state actions and legislation comes from

Trial courts in the federal judicial system are called

Dissenting opinions can be signed by only the chief justice or the most senior dissenting justice.

The party that brings a complaint in court is called the ______, and the one against whom the complaint is brought is called the ______.

Each of the following has been a method by which the federal courts have expanded their power except

Which of the following was not a case involving the Supreme Court overturning a state law?

The issue of employer liability for employee injuries sustained at work illustrates that

American Political Culture

The Founding and the Constitution

Federalism

Civil Liberties

Civil Rights

Public Opinion

The Media

Political Participation and Voting

Political Parties

Campaigns and Elections

Groups and Interests

Congress

The Presidency

Bureaucracy in a Democracy

Filters

The party that brings a complaint in court is called the , and the one against whom the complaint is brought is called the .