A.P. U.S. Government and Politics

Assignment #20: February 25, 2008

1. Read: Read chapter 10 on the Judiciary. Outline the chapter. (Due March 3).

Locate and take the quiz on-line—send me your results. Answer the following questions and define the terms on a separate piece of paper; your responses should be thorough and analytical. The questions should be answered in complete paragraphs—they should begin with clear topic sentences. (Due March 3).

SHORT ANSWER. Write the word or phrase that best completes each statement or answers the question.

1) What is the attitudinal model of judicial decision making?

4) Compare and contrast criminal law and civil law.

5) Compare the European Court of Justice with the U.S. Supreme Court.

6) What is judicial activism?

9) What was the Supreme Court's decision in Hamdi et al. v. Rumsfeld?

ESSAY. Write your answer on a separate sheet of paper.

11) In what ways are the federal courts political? In what ways do they make policies?

12) How does the Supreme Court decide to hear a case? What factors does it consider? What is the role of law clerks in the process? What happens once a case is accepted for review?

13) Discuss the constitutional provisions that establish the judicial branch. How were these further clarified in the Judiciary Act of 1789?

14) Discuss the importance of John Marshall and Marbury v. Madison for the role and importance of the Supreme Court.

15) Discuss appointments to the Supreme Court including nomination criteria and the confirmation process. Be sure to discuss how the process has changed in recent years.

16) How are Supreme Court decisions implemented? What influences how smoothly implementation occurs?

17) Discuss the structure of the federal court system and the types of cases each level is likely to hear.

18) Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of judicial activism and judicial restraint.

Terms:

1. Amicus Curiae

2. Appellate courts

3. Appellate jurisdiction

4. Brief

5. Civil Law

6. Constitutional courts

7. Criminal law

8. Judicial activism

9. Judicial implementation

10. Judicial restraint

11. Judicial review

12. Judiciary Act of 1789

13. Jurisdiction

14. Legislative courts

15. Marbury v. Madison (1803)

16. Original jurisdiction

17. Precedent

18. Rule of Four

19. Senatorial courtesy

20. Solicitor general/role

21. Stare decisis

22. Strict constructionist

23. Trial courts

24. Writ of certiorari

2. Current Events: Once again, read the news—be prepared to take a quiz next week on events of significance in the news. Be sure you are familiar with what is going on in the primary elections, the war in Iraq, the economy, etc.

Revised Schedule

Week Twenty-two (2/25)	The Judiciary	Chapter 10, O’Connor
Week Twenty-three (3/3)	Civil Liberties	Chapter 5, O’Connor
Unit Six	Public Policy
Week Twenty-four (3/10)	Civil Rights	Chapter 6, O’Connor
Easter Break (3/17)	Social Welfare Policy	Chapter 17, O’Connor
Week Twenty-five (3/24)	Economic Policy	Chapter 18, O’Connor
Week Twenty-six (3/31)	Foreign and Military Policy	Chapter 19, O’Connor
Week Twenty-seven (4/7)	Unit test #6
Unit Seven	A.P. Review
Week Twenty-eight (4/14)		Practice Test
Week Twenty-nine (4/21)		Practice Test
Week Thirty (4/28)		Practice Test
Week Thirty-one (5/5)	A.P. Exam
Week Thirty-two (5/12)
Week Thirty-three (5/19)	Semester Final Exam