What criteria is used to determine what cases the US Supreme Court will hear under appellate jurisdiction
Answers:
US Supreme Court cases typically involve complex questions of constitutional or federal law.
Most of the appellate cases originate in one the Circuit courts (U.S. Court of Appeals for the [Specific] Circuit), which is the intermediate court between the District (trial) Courts and the US Supreme Court. These are not to be confused with the US Circuit Courts that existed between 1789 and 1911, which were primarily trial courts.
On rare occasions, cases may be appealed directly from District (trial) Court to the Supreme Court, bypassing the Circuit Court. For example, United States v. Nixon, (1973), the dispute over whether the President was required to release the Watergate tapes to the Special Prosecutor, was appealed directly from the District Court. The flag desecration cases tried under the Flag Protection Act of 1989 were appealed directly to the US Supreme Court because Congress had specifically mandated that in the legislation.
The Supreme Court also considers cases on appeal from (or rejected for appeal by) State supreme courts, provided the case is of national importance and involves constitutional or federal law. The justices do not rule on state constitutional issues or state and municipal statutes.
The Supreme Court decides to hear a case on three major factors
Most cases accepted on appeal involve decisions that conflict with the High Court's interpretation of the Constitution or federal law, or that the Justices believe need clarification in order to establish a precedent for application across all lower courts. (See Rule 10, below)
The Court also hears a limited class of cases (such as disputes between states) under original jurisdiction, which means the Supreme Court is the first (and in this case, only) court to hear the dispute. The U.S. Supreme Court hears appeals of decisions made by lower level state and federal criminal courts and interprets federal and Constitutional law. The Supreme Court's most important responsibility is to rule on cases where the claimant alleges his or her Constitutional rights have been violated.
The Supreme Court only hears a small number of the petitions it receives each year. When the justices decline to rule on a particular case, the decision of the lower court becomes final.
Some of the important historical issues reviewed by the court include issues involving slavery and racism, abortion rights, capital punishment (which remains controversial), authority of the federal government over state governments, restrictions on freedom of speech, the rights of people accused of crimes, and so on.
The Court's interest and attention shifts over time. During the 50s and 60s, the Court focused extensively on Civil Rights; during the later 1960s and 70s, it reviewed many questions of 14th Amendment violations; and more recently, it has focused on state's rights issues and the Constitutionality of federal laws.
The Court has established rules governing its process and procedures, among these being Rule 10, which helps determine whether certiorari should be granted or denied. The Rules of the Supreme Court of the United States, adopted in October 2007, states the following:
Rule 10. Considerations Governing Review on Writ of Certiorari
"Review on a writ of certiorari is not a matter of right, but of judicial discretion. A petition for a writ of certiorari will be granted only for compelling reasons. The following, although neither controlling nor fully measuring the Court's discretion, indicate the character of the reasons the Court considers:
- (a) a United States court of appeals has entered a decision in conflict with the decision of another United States court of appeals on the same important matter; has decided an important federal question in a way that conflicts with a decision by a state court of last resort; or has so far departed from the accepted and usual course of judicial proceedings, or sanctioned such a departure by a lower court, as to call for an exercise of this Court's supervisory power;
- (b) a state court of last resort has decided an important federal question in a way that conflicts with the decision of another state court of last resort or of a United States court of appeals;
- (c) a state court or a United States court of appeals has decided an important question of federal law that has not been, but should be, settled by this Court, or has decided an important federal question in a way that conflicts with relevant decisions of this Court.
A petition for a writ of certiorari is rarely granted when the asserted error consists of erroneous factual findings or the misapplication of a properly stated rule of law."
Granting certiorari does not necessarily mean the Court disagrees with the final appellate court decision; there have been many instances in which those verdicts have been affirmed. Likewise, denying certiorari is not an indication that the Court agrees with the appellate court decision.
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