The Supreme Court
- Matthew Amend
- Nov 4, 2017
- 2 min read
My first year seminar classmates and I watched an older video early on in the semester that highlighted many of the major aspects of the Supreme Court. The video is broken down into two parts and can be viewed below.
Part 1
Part 2
If the embedded video player does not work for you or you prefer to view them on YouTube, this is the link to part one and this is the link to part 2.
A case starts with a written petition that asks the Supreme Court to act. The Court receives thousands of these every year from all types and classes of people. The President is given no more priority than an inmate sitting in prison.
The Supreme Court is composed of nine justices, is the most powerful judicial body on Earth, and has become a model for courts around the world.
The Supreme Court reaches their decisions in private and their job is to interpret the United States' 200 year old constitution. The president nominates justices and there have been just over one hundred of them. Each justice has served an average of 16 years, but many double that.
The Court draws the boundaries of power and therefore cannot avoid controversy. The power of the Court rests on the public's faith in their impartiality, which the Court has gained after 200 years. After the Dred Scott and Plessy cases, it has taken a long time for the Court to regain the people's trust.
While the constitution is extremely old, they are not interpreting the 200 year old document, they are interpreting the most recent version as the Constitution is a living document. The Supreme Court looks to the Constitution to solve national problems by deciding if the the law has been applied effectively and if the ruling was constitutional.
When the supreme court does not grant Certiorari they are not making a statement. There is no secrecy in the Supreme Court, everything is released in the opinion. Unlike other branches of government, the Court cannot present their own problems; the people must bring their problems to them.
A lawyer on each side of the case is given thirty minutes to argue their case. There are often three arguments present, the argument that is planned, the argument that is given, and the argument that the lawyer wishes they had given.
Within a few days the justices meet alone and vote about a case. One justice from the majority side is assigned to write an opinion. Any justice may also write a dissenting opinion. Drafts are sent to all nine justices for revision. Revisions and adjustments may go on for months. All decisions are released in late June at the end of the term.
When the Court speaks, people obey, and that is what keeps the U.S free. Fortunately, people often see a willingness to go against the popular opinion in the Supreme Court.
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