What factors does the Supreme Court consider when deciding whether to grant certiorari?
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journal article The Decision to Grant Certiorari as an Indicator to Decision "On the Merits"Polity Vol. 4, No. 4 (Summer, 1972) , pp. 429-447 (19 pages) Published By: The University of Chicago Press https://doi.org/10.2307/3234137 https://www.jstor.org/stable/3234137 Read and download Log in through your school or library Purchase article $14.00 - Download now and later Journal Information Current issues are available on the Chicago Journals website: Read the latest issue. Polity is the journal of the Northeastern Political Science Association, published quarterly since 1968. As a general-interest journal, it has always sought to publish work of interest to a broad range of political scientists — work that is lively, provocative, and readable. Polity is devoted to the premise that political knowledge advances through scholarly communication across subdiscipline boundaries. Publisher Information Since its origins in 1890 as one of the three main divisions of the University of Chicago, The University of Chicago Press has embraced as its mission the obligation to disseminate scholarship of the highest standard and to publish serious works that promote education, foster public understanding, and enrich cultural life. Today, the Journals Division publishes more than 70 journals and hardcover serials, in a wide range of academic disciplines, including the social sciences, the humanities, education, the biological and medical sciences, and the physical sciences. Rights & Usage This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. The Supreme Court of the United States in Washington, D.C. is the highest court in the nation. It is also the only federal court named specifically in the Constitution, which states that,
Beyond that, however, the Constitution tells us little about the make-up or organization of the court; it gives no qualifications for holding seats on the court, and doesn’t establish how many justices will be on the court. The Judiciary Act of 1789 set the size of the court at six; one Chief Justice and five Associate Justices. Over time, the court grew to as large as ten Justices. With the Judiciary Act of 1869, Congress decreased the number to nine, a number which has remained constant to this day. Current Justices of the U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice of the United States:
Associate Justices:
Retired Justices:
Read the biographies of the current Justices by visiting the website of the U.S. Supreme Court. Learn More About the U.S. Supreme Court Granting CertiorariThe Supreme Court receives about 10,000 petitions a year. The Justices use the "Rule of Four” to decide if they will take the case. If four of the nine Justices feel the case has value, they will issue a writ of certiorari. This is a legal order from the high court for the lower court to send the records of the case to them for review. When all is said and done the Supreme Court will hear about 75-85 cases a year. This tells us that most petitions are denied. The majority of the Supreme Court’s cases today are heard on appeal from the lower courts. These cases usually come from the federal courts of appeal, but the Court does sometimes hear appeals from the state Supreme Courts as well. The Justices of the Supreme Court are most likely to take cases that will affect the entire country, not just the individuals involved. They want to clarify legal issues that are important to as many people as possible, so they take cases that will have a large constitutional impact, or that answer important legal questions that affect the whole nation. Examples include questions like; "Can kids pray in school?" "Can you burn a flag at an anti-government rally?" Justices will also take a case when the lower courts cannot agree on how to interpret the law involved, or in which different lower courts have interpreted the law differently. When the lower courts decide cases differently, it can lead to confusion. As the “court of last resort,” the Supreme Court can and does make decisions that all the courts must follow. This is called establishing a precedent; a legal example which will be followed in all similar cases in the future. By taking a case that involves an issue that has led to differing opinions in the lower courts, the Supreme Court creates a precedent that every court in the country has to follow. This guarantees that the laws are applied equally to all people, no matter where they live. The Supreme Court only takes cases from state courts when the appeal involves the U.S. Constitution. Thus, the person making the appeal must show that his or her rights, under the Bill of Rights, were denied by the state, or that some error was made in the court that affected their due process rights. Because of these restrictions, most of the Supreme Court’s cases come from the lower federal courts and not from state courts. The U.S. Supreme CourtDirections: Click START to begin the Student Challenge. Use the ARROW to move through the questions. Check your RESULTS at the end. Congratulations - you have completed The U.S. Supreme Court. You scored %%SCORE%% out of %%TOTAL%%. Your performance has been rated as %%RATING%% Your answers are highlighted below. Shaded items are complete.
What are 3 factors that serve as reasons for Supreme Court decisions?Three factors must be present before the U.S. Supreme Court will review a state court decision:. A substantial federal question must be present. Must be a real question. ... . The federal question must be crucial to the decision. ... . The losing party must have exhausted all state remedies.. What are some factors that may influence decisions of the Supreme Court?But additional legal, personal, ideological, and political influences weigh on the Supreme Court and its decision-making process. On the legal side, courts, including the Supreme Court, cannot make a ruling unless they have a case before them, and even with a case, courts must rule on its facts.
What factors does the Supreme Court consider?The Supreme Court only takes cases from state courts when the appeal involves the U.S. Constitution. Thus, the person making the appeal must show that his or her rights, under the Bill of Rights, were denied by the state, or that some error was made in the court that affected their due process rights.
What does the Supreme Court consider when deciding a case?Almost all the cases that the justices hear are reviews of the decisions made by other courts—there are no juries or witnesses. The justices consider the records they are given, including lower court decisions for every step of a case, evidence, and the argument presented before them in making their final decision.
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