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Legal Encyclopedia - Federal courts

Table of contents

1 federal courts: an overview

2 menu of sources

2.1 Federal Material

2.1.1 U.S. Constitution
2.1.2 Federal Statutes
2.1.3 Federal Agency Regulations
2.1.4 Federal Judicial Decisions

2.2 Other References

2.2.1 Key Internet Sources
2.2.2 Useful Offnet (or Subscription- $) Sources

3 other topics

federal courts: an overview

The Federal Court system is comprised of the Supreme Court created by Article III (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articleiii.html#section1) of the U.S. Constitution (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/index.html) and lesser courts created by Congress under Article I Section 8 (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articlei.html#section8) power (for example, see 28 U.S.C. § 43). District courts function as trial courts. The federal system also has trial courts of special and exclusive jurisdiction that decide specific types of controversies such as copyright or bankruptcy issues. Appeals from the district and special courts are taken to the court of appeals for the judicial circuit in which the district court sits--the United States is divided into eleven circuits (plus DC and the special Federal Circuit) (http://www.law.emory.edu/FEDCTS/). Appeals from the circuit courts are taken to the Supreme Court (State court appeals can also be taken to the Supreme court if the case involves a federal question such as a Constitutional issue).

Federal Courts have limited subject matter jurisdiction. They can only hear cases that fall both within the scope defined by the constitution in Article III Section 2 (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articleiii.html#section2) and Congressional statutes (See 28 U.S.C. §1251, §1253, §1331, §1332).

menu of sources

Federal Material

U.S. Constitution

Article III (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.table.html#articleiii) - The Judiciary
Article II, Section 8 (http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articlei.html#section8) - Scope of Legislative Power (Allows Congress to establish federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court which are sometimes knownas "legislative courts".)

Federal Statutes

U.S. Code: 28 U.S.C. - Judiciary and Judicial Procedure

Federal Agency Regulations

Code of Federal Regulations: 28 C.F.R. - Judicial Administration (http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/28cfr.htm) (Deals Mostly with the Department of Justice)

Federal Judicial Decisions

U.S. Supreme Court:
- All Decisions Since 1990 (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/)
- Nixon v. U.S. (1992) (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/91-740.ZS.html)
- Decisions About the Role of Federal Courts (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/search/index.html?query=federal+and+courts+and+role)
U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals: Recent Decisions About the Role of Federal Courts (http://www.law.cornell.edu/usca/search/index.html?query=federal+and+courts+and+role)

Other References

Key Internet Sources

Federal Agencies:
- Federal Judicial Center (http://earth.fjc.gov/)
- Department of Justice (http://www.usdoj.gov)
- Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (http://www.uscourts.gov/)
LII Supreme Court Materials (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/)
- Gallery of the Justices (Information on Members of the Supreme Court) (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/fullcourt.html)
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/overview.htm)
Federal Rules of Evidence (http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre/overview.html)
Directory of Public Access Sources (http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov/pubaccess.html)
Explanation of Federal Courts (http://www.uscourts.gov/understanding_courts/8994.htm)
Origins of the Elements of Federal Court Governance (http://www.fjc.gov/history/home.nsf)

Useful Offnet (or Subscription- $) Sources

Good Starting Point in Print: Charles Alan Wright, Hornbook on Federal Courts (http://west.thomson.com/product/22092940/product.asp), West Group (2002)
LII Disk Materials (http://www.law.cornell.edu/disk.html)

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