| judiciary | the branch of government comprising the courts and the judges who preside over them
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| U.S. Supreme Court | high court with a limited original jurisdiction whose decisions may not be appealed; it serves as the court of last resort in the U.S. judiciary
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| Marbury v. Madison | the 1803 Supreme Court case that established the power of judicial review
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| judicial review | court authority to determine that an action taken by any government official or governing body violates the Constitution
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| circuit courts | also known as courts of appeals; the middle level in the federal court structure, the courts of appeals
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| circuit riding | the practice of traveling around the circuits by early Supreme Court justices and district court judges to hear appeals cases
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| courts of appeals | intermediate appellate courts in the federal system that review the application of law in previous decisions made by courts in the federal or state judicial system
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| civil law | the body of law dealing with the rights of private citizens
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| criminal law | the body of law dealing with conduct so harmful to society as a whole that it is prohibited by statute, and is prosecuted and punished by the government
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| tort | a wrongful act involving a personal injury or harm to one's property or reputation
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| common law | law made by judges who decide cases and articulate legal principles in their opinions; based on the British system
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| stare decisis | from the Latin "let the decision stand," the principle that binds judges to rely upon the holdings of past judges in deciding cases
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| precedent | legal authority established by earlier cases
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| code law | laws created by legislators to regulate the behavior of individuals and organizations
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| constitutional law | the body of law that comes out of the courts in cases involving the interpretation of the Constitution
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| statute | a law enacted by Congress or by state legislatures to deal with particular issues or problems, sometimes more detailed and comprehensive than the common law
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| U.S. Code | a compilation of all the laws passed by the U.S. Congress
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| dual court system | a two-part judicial system such as that of the United States, which has both federal and state courts
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| trial court | the court in which a case is first heard and which determines the facts of a case
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| jurisdiction | the power of a court to hear a case and to resolve it, given to a court by either a constitution or a statute
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| federal question | a question of law based on interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, federal laws, or treaties
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| diversity of citizenship | the circumstance in which the parties in a legal case are from different states or the case involves a U.S. citizen and a foreign government
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| original jurisdiction | the power of a court to hear a case first, before other courts have decided it
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| appellate jurisdiction | the authority of a court to review the the application or interpretation of the law in previous decisions reached by another court in a case
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| justice | any of the nine judges who sit on the Supreme Court
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| chief justice | the leading justice on the Supreme Court, who provides both organizational and intellectual leadership
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| senatorial courtesy | A custom that allows senators from the president's political party to veto the president's choice of federal district court judge in the senator's state
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| symbolic representation | the attempt to ensure that the Supreme Court includes representatives of major demographic groups, such as women, African Americans, Jews, and Catholics
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| collegial court | a court made up of a group of judges who must evaluate a case together and decide on the outcome; significant compromise and negotiation take place as members try to build a majority coalition
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| pool memo | description written by Court clerks of the facts of a case filed with the Court, the pertinent legal arguments, and a recommendation as to whether the case should be taken
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| discuss list | compiled by the chief justice, the list of cases on review that he thinks may be appropriate for the Court to hear
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| writ of certiorari | Latin for "a request to make certain"; this is an order to a lower court to produce a certified record of a case so that the appellate court can determine whether any errors occurred during trial that warrant review of the case
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| Rule of Four | practice by which the Supreme Court justices determine if they will hear a case if four or more justices want to hear it
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| brief | a document detailing the legal argument for the desired outcome in a court case
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| amicus curiae brief ("friend of the court" brief) | document submitted by parties interested in a certain case or issue in an attempt to provide the Court with information that may be used to decide the case
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| oral arguments | the stage when appeals court judges or Supreme Court justices meet with the petitioner and the respondent to ask questions about the legal interpretations or information contained in their briefs
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| concurring opinion | judicial opinion agreeing with how the majority decides the case but disagreeing with at least some of the legal interpretations or conclusions reached by the majority
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| dissenting opinion | judicial opinion disagreeing both with the majority's disposition of a case and with their legal interpretations and conclusions
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| judicial activism | an approach to judicial decision making whereby judges apply their authority to bring about specific social goals
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