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In this chapter, we'll take a look at the court system and really look at them as the
referee in our system of government. As well, we'll take a look at some of the top U.S.
Supreme Court decisions that you should now. Just for a moment, try to imagine that the
federal government is a sporting event and you've got teams and players out there running
around trying to accomplish goals. In any sporting event, what's the most important
function besides the coacheand the players? Well, it's the referee because the referee
is there to make sure the rules are followed. Think of the American court system as the
referee who is there to blow the whistle, to stop the game, to take away points, to
make judgments about what is fair or not, and the way the Supreme Court and the federal
court system in general does this is by looking at the Constitution and the laws that have
been written and the provisions of the Constitution and making judgments about decisions by the
president, laws that are passed by Congress, or even conflicts between laws that are passed
by state governments, and signed by governors and federal law. What they're doing is trying
to sort out what is constitutional, fair and just, and what isn't. If you think about it
that way, the Supreme Court is an incredibly important piece of American government and
this chapter focuses on the courts and lays that out. This chapter talks about the history
of American law, and how American law is conceptualized, in other words, how it's developed. The judges
often play a very important role, actually, even when there is a written law, in interpreting
the law, and trying to say how a law that may have been written years ago applies to
modern American society. Chapter talks about different courts, there are actually some
specialized pieces of the federal court system that in the past we never knew anything about.
There are specialized federal courts that deal with terrorism, for example. Chapter
also goes into the kind of details of how the Supreme Court works, what kind of cases
get to the Supreme Court - very few do, actually. You can't just appeal a ruling to the Supreme
Court; you can try but the Supreme Court in most cases will say, well, this is not a case
that we really want to look at, it's not important enough if it's not a constitutional case,
and for the federal court system, generally they will only take a look at and sit in judgment
on cases where they think there really needs to be clarifications of actual constitutional
law. The chapter also talks about how judges are appointed and how presidents are always
trying to get people on the Supreme Court and get them through the senate judiciary
committee which has to vote on them and get them on there so that they represent the philosophy
of the president. So the Court is the referee of government and you'll see the Court in
the news almost every day that they're sitting in judgment - very interesting institution.
Now let's take a quick look at some of the Supreme Court cases that I think are important
that you should know. Marbury v. Madison (1803). That established the system of checks and
balances and the power of the Supreme Court within the federal government. In 1857, the
Dred Scott v. Standford decision. That established that slaves were not citizens of the United
States and were not protected under the U.S. Constitution. Another important case: 1896,
Plessy v. Ferguson. That established the rule of segregation, separate but equal. Then what
we found in 1954, Brown v. the Board of Education. That's a decision that overturned Plessy v.
Ferguson and granted equal protection under the law. Historical significance: Racial segregation
violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. We've talked about this earlier.
Another case, 1963, Gideon vs. Wainwright. That's a decision that guarantees a right
to counsel. It's historical significance: Ensures the Sixth Amendment's guarantee to
counsel is applicable to the states through the 14th Amendment's due process clause. In
1966, we saw Miranda v. Arizona. That established the rights of suspects against self-incrimination.
Historical significant is generally known: Upon arrest and/or questioning all suspects
are given some form of their constitutional rights: "You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right
to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand
the rights I have just read to you? With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me?"
That's the Miranda warning. 1973, Roe v. Wade. That extended the right to privacy to include
a woman's right to choose pregnancy or an abortion. Historical significance is that
abortion is legal in all 50 states. In 1974, U.S. v. Nixon. This is a decision that established
that executive privilege is neither absolute nor unqualified. Historical significance is
that the president is not above the law. In 1978, we saw the Regents of the University
of California v. Bakke. We've discussed this earlier in the course. This is a decision
that ruled that race cannot be the only factor in college admissions. Affirmative action
is approved by the Court that schools may use race as an admissions factor, but race
cannot be the only factor. In 1961, we saw Mapp v. Ohio. That's a case that established
that evidence obtained through an illegal search cannot be used at trial. We also saw
in 2012 a number of cases related to the constitutionality of the sweeping health care reform law that
is in the news these days. What these decisions did is upheld a central provision -- a requirement
that people have health insurance. In the final case, U.S. v. Windsor in 2013, that's
a decision that ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act, which defined the term "marriage"
under federal law as a "legal union between one man and one woman" deprived same-sex couples
who are legally married under state laws of their Fifth Amendment rights to equal protection
under federal law. Historical significance: The court rules that the Defense of Marriage
Act is unconstitutional. That said, let's look quickly at some of the concepts you'll
need to know for the quiz. You'll need to know how are Supreme Court judges selected?
Be familiar with the terms jurisdiction, standing, friend of the court. Know what the levels
of the court system are. Understand written opinion, the importance of dissenting opinions,
judicial activist, strict construction interpretation. And can Supreme Court rulings be overturned
and, if so, how? Good luck!