The American Democracy, 10th Edition (Patterson)

Chapter 14: The Federal Judicial System: Applying the Law

Multiple Choice Quiz

1
In Bush v. Gore (2000),
A)a majority of justices ruled that the manual recount in Florida violated the equal protection clause.
B)the most conservative justices sided with George W. Bush.
C)Justice John Paul Stevens argued that the Florida high court had acted properly in ordering a recount.
D)the justices did not uphold the decision of the Florida Supreme Court.
E)All these answers are correct.
2
"Senatorial courtesy" refers to
A)the custom of allowing a senator from the same state as a Supreme Court-approved nominee to perform the swearing-in of that justice.
B)the right of the Senate Judiciary Committee to approve of all Supreme Court justice nominees.
C)the custom by which a senator from the state in which a lower-court vacancy has arisen should be consulted on the choice of the nominee if the senator is of the same party as the president.
D)the practice of seeking approval from the chairmen of the Senate Judiciary Committee by a president before nominating a Supreme Court justice.
E)the informal blessing that the Senate Judiciary Committee bestows on lower-court federal judgeship nominees.
3
Who was the first female Supreme Court justice in the United States?
A)Ruth Bader Ginsburg
B)Sandra Day O'Connor
C)Jeanne Kirkpatrick
D)Kay Bailey Hutchison
E)Nancy Kassebaum
4
Who was the first African American Supreme Court justice in the United States?
A)Clarence Thomas
B)Antonin Scalia
C)Thurgood Marshall
D)Louis Brandeis
E)Felix Frankfurter
5
Which of the following statements is true?
A)The vast majority of cases involve issues of statutory and administrative law.
B)The vast majority of cases involve issues of constitutional law.
C)Statutory law is derived from administrative law.
D)Administrative law is set by legislatures instead of government agencies.
E)Most cases are state cases and involve issues of constitutional law.
6
The president that made 30% and 25%, respectively, of his federal judge appointees from women and minority groups was
A)Ronald Reagan.
B)George H. W. Bush.
C)George W. Bush.
D)Bill Clinton.
E)Richard Nixon.
7
The American legal system is based on the ________ tradition.
A)Irish
B)French
C)English
D)Italian
E)Greek
8
Which of the following does NOT act as a constraint on federal judges?
A)U.S. Constitution
B)statutory law
C)precedent
D)political preferences of judges
E)All of the answers are correct except political preference of judges.
9
Which of the following decisions suggests that the Supreme Court justices are attentive to public opinion?
A)voluntary school prayer in the public schools
B)desegregation of public schools with "all deliberate speed"
C)police informing suspected felons of their rights
D)ban on burning the flag
E)None of these answers is correct.
10
The Supreme Court is most likely to grant certiorari when
A)the lower appellate court acted improperly.
B)a particularly vague legal issue is involved.
C)a high-ranking member of the Senate requests it.
D)the U.S. government through the solicitor general requests it.
E)the Court believes it has a chance to set strong precedent.
11
In deciding who will write the opinion for the majority in a Supreme Court ruling,
A)the senior justice in the majority picks the opinion author when the chief justice is not in the majority.
B)the most senior member of the majority is automatically chosen as the opinion writer.
C)an informal vote is taken among the justices to decide who the writer will be.
D)the decision is made by the most senior member of the dissenting minority.
E)top consideration is given to the justice who has had the least opportunity to write opinions.
12
Typically, the Supreme Court justices review less than ________ percent of the cases heard by the circuit court of appeals.
A)1
B)10
C)20
D)33
E)50
13
Which of the following is an aspect of the merit plan method of appointing judges?
A)The public chooses the individual judge to serve from a short list of acceptable candidates provided by the governor.
B)The public chooses the individual judge to serve from a short list of acceptable candidates provided by a judicial selection commission.
C)The governor-selected judge must run in a public election against other independent candidates.
D)The governor appoints a judge from a short list of acceptable candidates provided by a judicial selection commission.
E)The governor selects the judge to serve from a short list of candidates approved by the voters.
14
________ was rejected as a Supreme Court nominee in 1987.
A)Anthony Kennedy
B)Douglas Ginsberg
C)Robert Bork
D)Clarence Thomas
E)David Souter
15
Which of the following is true of courts of appeals?
A)They act as interpreters of law rather than as supervisors of the legal system.
B)They generally presume the facts found by the district courts to be correct.
C)They create their own case records to review instead of using the lower court's records.
D)New evidence is often but does not have to be introduced in an appeals case.
E)Most courts of appeals rely on juries.
16
Which of the following justices was NOT a Republican appointee?
A)William Rehnquist
B)Sandra Day O'Connor
C)Antonin Scalia
D)Anthony Kennedy
E)Stephen Breyer
17
What is an amicus curiae brief?
A)"on behalf of the court" brief
B)"friend of the court" brief
C)"educate the court" brief
D)"to help the court" brief
E)None of these answers is correct.
18
The Supreme Court established the power of judicial review in
A)Article III of the Constitution.
B)the Judiciary Act of 1789.
C)Federalist No.78.
D)Marbury v. Madison (1803).
E)McCulloch v. Maryland (1819).
19
Most federal cases are resolved by
A)mediators.
B)district court judges.
C)circuit court judges.
D)Supreme Court justices.
E)None of these answers is correct.
20
The sovereignty of each state is protected by
A)federal law.
B)Article VI of the Constitution.
C)the First Amendment.
D)the Tenth Amendment.
E)heritage and cultural traditions.
Patterson Tenth Edition Large Cover
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