The supreme court sees generally to be ignored on the vast majority of its cases that it holds. Some cases hold a particular interest from the public because of publicity due to the topics they address but it is no secret that the vast majority of these cases are ignored by people in their everyday life. It can be seen with some examples from cases like Brown v. Buhman, Spokeo v. Robbins, Fisher v. University of Texas that the decision made in these cases can have an impact on the lives of all or many citizens that generally ignore their outcomes holding no regard for the standings of the supreme court. Let us start with Brown v. Buhman as the first example for why the average citizen should care about the supreme court. This case covers an issue with the Brown family a group of polygamists regarding a statute in Utah. This case brings up a few important things to be recognized. Primarily the case regards standing and mootness of a case, these are both important aspects of law to understand. For a case to continue and take place it has to be relevant and there has to be a reason for the case to be brought up. In the case of Brown v. Buman if part of the statute was deemed unconstitutional then the case would no longer be needed as it would solve the issue. Now although most people may feel that on the outside an understanding of this case is irrelevant to them as it handles a case of polygamy it holds many important considerations. One of which is free exercise
The role of the Judicial Branch of the United States has been the most dynamic throughout the Nation’s history. By adopting the power of judicial review in Marbury v. Madison in 1803, the Supreme Court established its position as being arguably the most powerful branch of Federal Government. However, this also made the Judiciary’s role the most controversial. Should the Court be required to interpret the constitution strictly through the language it contains? Does the Court have the right to overturn morals legislation? Through analyzing court cases like Lawrence v. Texas, one can gain insight on the role of the Supreme Court and how it fits within the confines of the United States Government.
Article III, Section II of The Constitution states, “In all cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers or Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction…” The Supreme Court is where the nation’s most controversial cases end up, and where decisions that impact the future of America are made. Every year, only about 80 cases are heard by the Supreme Court (“U.S. Supreme Court,” 2016). Each case meets a set of four criteria, all of which must be met in order to be considered by the Supreme Court justices. The first, and most important, criteria is a circuit split. This means that there was a serious conflict of law in the lower courts and the Supreme Court feels that this case is detrimental to the law (“Supreme Court Criteria,” 2016). The second of the four is that it must be a highly important case to the American future, such as U.S. v. Nixon on the Watergate scandal, Roe v. Wade on abortion, and Bush v. Gore on the close presidential race of 2000. The third requirement is that a justice is relatively interested in the case. They want the controversial, detrimental cases that will be ambitious. The case is to be highly considered if in the lower courts, a supreme court decision that has already been decided upon was denied. (“How Does the U.S.,” 2013). If all four criteria are met, then the case is fair game in the eyes of the Supreme Court justices.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the nation and is responsible for being the impartial judge in interpreting the law of the land. One of the biggest struggles the Court can face is having to rule for what is constitutional over what is morally right. This is not referring to Plessy v. Ferguson where we only know it was morally wrong in hindsight. This is referring to a case where the judges knew fully well that what had happened was a tragedy and an injustice yet, they had to rule against what any normal human being would vote for. Imagine the difficulty in that. Now, imagine the public backlash when it was announced. The conflict of morality vs. constitutionality in the Court in the case of DeShaney v Winnebago County is apparent
The Supreme Court often oversteps its perceived legal sovereignty when using judicial review. Article III of the Constitution solely vests the courts the “judicial power of the United States” never mentioning the power of judicial review. The judiciary’s duty, according to the law of the land, is “to interpret the laws, not scan the authority of the lawgiver” (Gibson, J.). The judiciary has not followed a strict interpretation of the constitution; rather, it has encroached on the power of the legislative branch and the sanctity of the separation of powers. If the Constitution “were to come into collision with an act of the legislature” (Gibson, J.), the Constitution would take precedent, but it is
It takes time to reach the highest court in the country; currently the average Supreme Court justice age is nearly seventy years old. It is reasonable to think that biases may be hardened and unable to keep up with the popular opinion by this age. For example, take public approval of same-sex marriage, which in the six short years from 2009 to 2015 rose nearly twenty percent in the polls, bringing it to a 55% majority. How does a Supreme Court with a stagnant appointment system react to such a sudden sway in opinion? Apparently, surprisingly well. For whatever reason, the decisions of the Supreme Court seem to align with public opinion. For instance, in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges, the supreme court reached a 5-4 majority in for same-sex marriage. Public opinion at the time was 55% in favor, and remarkably, the portion of justices in favor was within less than one percent of that value. Perhaps the Supreme Court acknowledges its role to interpret the Constitution through the eyes of the people, as Justice Kennedy describes. Or perhaps it is due to the powerful weight swing positions carry in the Supreme Court. Whatever the mechanism, the Supreme Court does a remarkable job of staying neck and neck with popular opinion.
A lot of court cases are historically important and sometimes they the result in changing certain laws. For example, the Brown v. Board of Ed court case ended racial segregation in the U.S., and the Gideon v. Wainwright case required the state to provide low-income defendants with an attorney if they could not afford one. These two cases changed the Federal Constitution against racism and made it possible for all citizens to have the same rights in Untied State, and everyone experiences these changes on a daily basis. Another court case made a change in the Federal Constitution is Tinker v. Des Moines. Tinker v. Des Moines court case took a big part during the Vietnam War because it brought even more attention to the
Assassinations, riots, and boycotting all led up to the society we have today. Whites and blacks were not allowed to be friends, class mates or even be around each other. They had separate things which listed whites only and blacks only. This included schools, railroad cars, and busses.Two key cases are Plessy v.s. Ferguson and Brown v.s. Board of Education. The majority and minority’s decisions for these two cases set precedent that will effect everyone in America. These landmark cases are closely related because they helped provide the true intent of the 13th and 14th amendment. In addition, Plessy v.s. Ferguson and Brown v.s. Board of Education effectively help revolutionize the interpretation of the 13th and 14th amendment.
United States Supreme Court cases are argued and decided on Constitutional grounds. All arguments and decisions are based on interpretations of the original Constitution and, more often, on Constitutional amendments.
There have been several different Supreme Court cases over the years that have been influential to most everybody who is aware of them. For example, the case of Roe vs. Wade was and still is immensely influential and is the cause of pro-life/pro-choice debates. Another important case was Marbury vs. Madison, which was the first Supreme Court case to ever declare that a law passed by Congress was unconstitutional. Even though those two cases were a couple of the most important and influential in American history nothing compares to the influence that the case of Gideon vs. Wainwright has provided, in my opinion. This case was tremendously important to the way that law enforcement is to be carried out in that it forced detectives and
The Supreme Court is the courtroom where all the legal cases dealing with congress or the constitution go to get a final decision. The Court is currently composed of a chief justice, eight associate justices, and nine officers. Their main goal as members of the Supreme Court is to make sure everything and anything abides by the constitution. It has many powers when it comes to law and especially the constitution, but it is not overly powerful due to the other two branches of the government. Checks and balances helps keep their powers level and just as important as the executive and legislative branch powers. The Court has the ability to remove a law or refute anything that violates the United States Constitution. The Supreme Court, on average, receives around 7,000-8,000 petitions for a writ of certiorari every term. The Court grants and hears oral arguments for eighty cases. One case specifically was Printz v. United States. This case focused on dealing with background checks when purchasing a firearm. Jay Printz deemed the provisions to the Brady Bill unconstitutional, decided to take it to the District Courts and eventually the case ended up in the Supreme Court, where Stephen P. Halbrook fought and won the case based on a five to four ruling in favor of Printz.
The landmark Supreme Court cases of Dred Scott v. Sandford, Plessy v. Ferguson, and Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas have had a tremendous effect on the struggle for equal rights in America. These marker cases have set the precedent for cases dealing with the issue of civil equality for the last 150 years.
The U.S. Supreme Court is the ultimate authority in the American legal system and is the central institution that coordinates laws that affect the American society every day. The Supreme Court has issued verdicts on issues that involves the rights of citizens, including those of women, minorities, elderly, disabled, gays, young people, and many others. These changes have had both positive and adverse outcomes that ostensibly improve the status of the American people and defining the rights of lawbreakers. The Supreme Court rulings have had a profound influence on the actions of citizens and the political direction of this country.
Supreme court justices have two opposing philosophies about interpreting the Constitution, known as judicial activism and judicial restraint. Judicial restraint being an interpretation that encourages judges to limit the exercise of their power, and shouldn’t act unless something is obviously unconstitutional, and judicial activism being rulings that are suspected of being for personal or political reasons, rather than by existing law. Each have their strengths and weaknesses, which is why it’s so hard to decide which one is more acceptable. Many cases have been decided by these two concepts. Judicial activism was the concept used in the case of Roe v. Wade, in which the Conservative ruled Supreme Court voted to enforce a law that prohibited abortion, unless to save the women’s life.
Policy issues are brought before the Supreme Court and it is the Supreme Courts role to interpret the law in question. Therefore, the Supreme Court has a role as a policymaker and the policies they are in charge of making are some of the most vital policies for society. For instance, many States today and throughout history have created laws that violate people’s rights and liberties given to them by the Constitution. For example, in 1890 Louisiana created a law requiring “separate but equal” railroad accommodations for blacks and whites. Homer Plessy challenged this law and the Supreme Court upheld the Louisiana statute in Plessy v. Ferguson (p.30). Plessy v. Ferguson were part of the Jim Crow laws, which were not overturned until the Brown
The Supreme Court of the United States of America often makes decisions, which change this great nation in a great way. These changes can affect society in many different ways. In many instances there is dissonance over their decisions and the court itself is often split as to how the views are looked upon. The effect of the Courts decision generates discourse and on occasion, violence. This is what happened in the case of Miranda v. Arizona in 1966. This case changed the history of this country and left a tremendous impact, which many challenge, the ruling and still protest today.