AP U.S. Government topic quiz4 questions

2.8 The Judicial Branch

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Question 1

Question 1 of 4

A state court judgment rests on a federal constitutional issue. Which court may ultimately review that federal issue?

The U.S. Supreme Court may review a federal question in a final judgment from the highest state court in which a decision could be had. Federal district courts and courts of appeals do not sit as appellate courts over final state judgments, and lower federal review is not a prerequisite to Supreme Court review of the federal issue.
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C. The Supreme Court of the United States on review of the federal question

The U.S. Supreme Court may review a federal question in a final judgment from the highest state court in which a decision could be had. Federal district courts and courts of appeals do not sit as appellate courts over final state judgments, and lower federal review is not a prerequisite to Supreme Court review of the federal issue.

Question 2

Question 2 of 4

A plaintiff files a federal civil-rights claim in the federal system. The case requires witness testimony, documentary evidence, and findings about disputed events. Which court ordinarily builds that trial record?

Federal district courts are the principal federal trial courts and ordinarily receive evidence and develop the record. Courts of appeals and the Supreme Court chiefly review records created elsewhere. A constitutional claim does not automatically enter the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction, and neither the identity of a federal officer nor the general subject of federal law sends the case to the Federal Circuit.
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D. A United States district court with subject-matter jurisdiction

Federal district courts are the principal federal trial courts and ordinarily receive evidence and develop the record. Courts of appeals and the Supreme Court chiefly review records created elsewhere. A constitutional claim does not automatically enter the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction, and neither the identity of a federal officer nor the general subject of federal law sends the case to the Federal Circuit.

Question 3

Question 3 of 4

Congress establishes a new lower federal court and assigns it jurisdiction over a defined category of federal claims. Which constitutional principle most directly supports that action?

Article III creates the Supreme Court and permits Congress to establish inferior federal courts. Congress may organize those courts and define much of their jurisdiction within constitutional limits. The Appointments Clause concerns who selects officers, the Tenth Amendment does not give states a veto over federal court organization, and the Supreme Court does not create lower courts by transferring cases.
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A. Article III establishes one Supreme Court and permits Congress to create inferior federal courts

Article III creates the Supreme Court and permits Congress to establish inferior federal courts. Congress may organize those courts and define much of their jurisdiction within constitutional limits. The Appointments Clause concerns who selects officers, the Tenth Amendment does not give states a veto over federal court organization, and the Supreme Court does not create lower courts by transferring cases.

Question 4

Question 4 of 4

Two states disagree about ownership of land along their shared boundary and bring the dispute directly to the Supreme Court. Which statement best describes the Court's role?

Article III places cases in which a state is a party within the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction, and an interstate boundary dispute is a classic example of a case that may begin there. Original jurisdiction concerns where the case begins; it is not diversity jurisdiction, an appeal from a state court, or a route through the Federal Circuit.
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B. The Court may exercise original jurisdiction because a state is a party on each side

Article III places cases in which a state is a party within the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction, and an interstate boundary dispute is a classic example of a case that may begin there. Original jurisdiction concerns where the case begins; it is not diversity jurisdiction, an appeal from a state court, or a route through the Federal Circuit.

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