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    Court

    From Ballotpedia - Reading time: 7 min
    Ballotpedia: Index of Terms


    A court is a kind of forum used by a governmental body to dispense justice and adjudicate disputes. Courts may be used to deal with issues of civil, labor, administrative and criminal law. In many legal systems, parties who have been accused of a crime have the right to a court trial where they may plead their case. Courts also tend to be the primary means for dispute resolution between parties in common or civil law systems.[1][2]

    In addition to the legal forum, the term "court" may also be used to refer to the president of the court, otherwise known as the "judge" or the "bench." This usage is most commonly found in legal code, as in the case of the U.S. federal courts.[2]

    Jurisdiction[edit]

    See also: Jurisdiction

    The jurisdiction of a court refers to the areas over which the court has authority. Different courts have power of review over different kinds of legal questions or petitions. Jurisdiction may be divided into both the geographic area over which the court presides (territorial jurisdiction) and the types of subject matter that the court may deal with (subject-matter jurisdiction).[3]

    Court proceedings[edit]

    Some trial courts make use of a judge and a jury. In such cases, juries act under the direction of the judge and make decisions regarding disputed facts, while the judge makes decisions on matters of the law. In conjunction, these two decisions represent the judgment of the court. In other courts, the judge or judges may be responsible for decisions of both fact and law are made by the judge or judges. Juries are less common in court systems outside the Anglo-American common law tradition.[4]

    For a plaintiff to win a civil lawsuit with a jury, three-quarters of the jurors must find in the plaintiff's favor. In a criminal trial, determination of guilt or innocence requires a unanimous decision of the jury.[5] The only exceptions are the cases of Oregon and Louisiana, which both allow convictions on 10-2 or 11-1 margins, requiring unanimous verdicts only in capital cases.[6]

    Types of courts[edit]

    Courts may be classified as trial courts and appellate courts.

    Trial courts[edit]

    See also: Trial court

    Trial courts (sometimes termed "courts of first instance" or "courts of original jurisdiction") are the courts in which most criminal and civil cases commence. Cases are heard for the first time in trial courts, and only those involved in a case are affected by the outcome. The proceedings involve two sides presenting evidence and witnesses, and either a judge or a jury making a decision based on the evidence presented.[7]

    The trial court makes findings both of fact and of law. Later, the findings of law made by the trial court may be appealed to a higher court that has the power of review.[8] Generally, the findings of fact made by the trial court are presumed to be accurate. When the records of the trial court are accepted as accurate by the appellate court, the trial court is referred to as the court of record.

    Appellate courts[edit]

    See also: Appellate Court

    Appellate courts have the power to review judgments of a lower court or tribunal.[3] The highest judicial body within a jurisdiction's court system is known as the court of last resort.[9]

    Federal appellate courts[edit]

    The United States has 12 regional circuits, divided into 94 judicial districts. Each judicial district has a district court, and each regional circuit has an appeals court. Appeals courts hear the appeals coming out of the district courts located within their circuits.[10]

    The highest appellate court in the United States Federal Court System is the Supreme Court of the United States. The Supreme Court holds both original and appellate jurisdiction, with its appellate jurisdiction accounting for most of the Court's caseload.[11]

    State appellate courts[edit]

    Each of the United States and the District of Columbia has at least one supreme court, or court of last resort. Oklahoma and Texas both have two courts of last resort, one for civil appeals and one for criminal appeals. There are also 43 state appellate courts in 40 states. Ten states do not have dedicated intermediate appellate courts: Delaware, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming.

    See also[edit]

    Terms and definitions

    Major courts

    External links[edit]

    Footnotes[edit]

    1. ↑ Merriam Webster, "Court definition," accessed December 22, 2015
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Free Dictionary, "Court legal definition," accessed December 22, 2015
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on behalf of the Federal Judiciary, "Glossary," accessed December 17, 2015
    4. ↑ The Free Dictionary, "Jury definition," accessed December 15, 2015
    5. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named uslegal
    6. ↑ Fully Informed Jury Association, "Supreme Court to Consider Revisiting Non-Unanimous Jury Verdicts," April 25, 2014
    7. ↑ Cornell University Law School, "Trial court definition," accessed December 9, 2015
    8. ↑ The Leadership Conference, "The Difference between Trial Courts and Appellate Courts," accessed December 9, 2015
    9. ↑ U.S. Legal, "Court of last resort Definition," accessed August 25, 2013
    10. ↑ United States Courts, "Courts of Appeals," accessed June 25, 2013
    11. ↑ The Supreme Court of the United States, "A Brief Overview of the Supreme Court," accessed December 19, 2015


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