C. asked:


And what are the powers of the lower courts in the judical branch?
Somebody please help me it’s for a history project that’s due tomarrow and I can’t find the answers online and I left my history book in my locker hah!

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2 Responses to “What are the powers of the supreme court of the united states?”

1. HumanAction on October 25th, 2011 9:35 am

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   The Supreme Court is supposed to make rulings on whether or not bills and laws are constitutional or not. Today, unfortunately, they make laws through their rulings, which is not the original intent. But as Jefferson said, it is the natural progress for government to gain ground, and liberty to yield. The incentive for each branch is to be more powerful, and they all strive for that.

2. addicted to piercings on October 28th, 2011 9:12 pm

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   II Power of the Supreme Court

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   The Supreme Court is the only court mentioned by name in the Constitution. Article III establishes the Court as the top of the country’s judicial branch, making it equal to the executive branch (the president) and the legislative branch (Congress). Article III also gives the Court jurisdiction (authority to review) over broad classes of cases. In 1803 in Marbury v. Madison the Court interpreted its own authority, ruling that the Constitution gave it the power to strike down unconstitutional acts of government—that is, laws or other government conduct that violate the Constitution. This decision created the power of judicial review, an essential component in the American system of checks and balances, a system that is intended to safeguard Americans from government abuses of power.

   III Jurisdiction

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   Article III gives the Supreme Court two types of jurisdiction. The Court’s most important jurisdiction is appellate, the power to hear appeals of cases decided in lower federal courts and state supreme courts. Under Article III, the Court’s appellate jurisdiction extends to seven classes of cases: (1) cases arising under the Constitution, federal law, or treaty; (2) those involving admiralty and maritime matters; (3) those in which the United States itself is a party; (4) cases between two or more states; (5) cases between citizens of different states or foreign countries; (6) cases between a state and individuals or foreign countries; and (7) cases between citizens of the same state if they are disputing ownership of land given by different states. The first category is the most important. In these cases, part of the federal question jurisdiction, the Court issues its most far-reaching constitutional decisions and other major rulings involving federal law.

   The Supreme Court has a far less important authority known as its original jurisdiction, which includes cases that have not been previously heard in other courts. This gives the Court the power to sit as a trial court to hear cases affecting ambassadors and other foreign officials, and in cases in which a state is a party. The Court rarely exercises its original jurisdiction, since Congress has granted concurrent jurisdiction over most of these cases to the lower courts. Only disputes between two or more states must be heard initially in the Supreme Court. In 1997 and 1998, for example, it heard a dispute between New York and New Jersey over the ownership of Ellis Island.

   Congress cannot alter the Supreme Court’s original jurisdiction, but Article III of the Constitution gives it power to control the Court’s appellate jurisdiction. The Court may not exercise any of its appellate jurisdiction without congressional authorization, and Congress may limit the appellate jurisdiction however it chooses. Congress has authorized the Court to use its full appellate jurisdiction, except on rare occasions.

   IV Judicial Review

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   The Supreme Court’s principle power is judicial review—the right of the Court to declare laws unconstitutional. This authority is not expressly stated in the Constitution. The Supreme Court has exercised judicial review since 1803, when Chief Justice John Marshall first announced it in Marbury v. Madison. Marshall deduced the necessity of such a power from the purpose and existence of the Constitution. He reasoned that judicial review was necessary to implement the Constitution’s substantive and procedural limits on the government. If the Court could not strike down a law that conflicted with the Constitution, Marshall said, then the legislature would have a “real and practical omnipotence.” Judicial review is both a powerful and controversial tool because it allows the Supreme Court to have the ultimate word on what the Constitution means. This permits the Court justices—who are appointed rather than elected—to overrule decisions already made by Congress and legislatures throughout the country.

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