What's the difference between a circuit court and federal supreme court?
956206
There are separate court systems for state and federal.  The different systems have different jurisdictions, that is types of cases they can hear. \n\nIn the federal court system, there are levels of courts. The lowest level is the federal district court, which is the trial court. This is where federal cases start.\n\nThe next level up is the US Circuit Court of Appeal, which hears appeals from the District Court.  Each Circuit covers a certain amount of states.  For example, California is covered by the 9th Circuit.  \n\nThe U.S. Supreme Court can choose which appeals to hear from the Circuit Court and resolves constitutional issues.  The U.S. Supreme Court can also hear appeals from the individual State supreme courts and is the highest court of the land.  The Supreme Court will not hear cases that have not gone through the district court and circuit court first.  \n\nSo an example.  A person gets arrested after the FBI uses a wiretap and he is prosecuted in District Court for terrorism.  He gets convicted and appeals to the Circuit Court because of the illegal wiretap.  The Circuit Court does not conduct a new trial, but decides the wiretap was illegal government action.  The government appeals to the US Supreme Court to resolve the constitutionality of the wiretap.
140420
According to a real literal reading of the Constitution, it would just be the "Court."  It refers to a supreme Court, not as the title "Supreme Court" but just to mean the highest court in the land as compared to the inferior courts.\n\nSo, the head of the Judicial Branch is "the Court."
871260
The US is a federation, so there are 3 branches of gov't for each state and 3 levels for the federal (united) gov't in Washington DC.  The judicial branch is the Courts.  There are 3 levels of courts in every state and 3 levels for the federal courts.  The trial court, the appeals court, and the court of last resort.  Next, is the legislative branch.  Every state and the federal gov't all have 2 chambers, the house and the senate.  Next is the executive.  They do the administration and at the state levels they are called the "Governor," and his appointees, and at the federal level it is called the "President," and his appointees.  Good luck, Shay!
47375
Cases have to first be filed at a court of first impression. If the case has federal jurisdiction, this would be the Federal Circuit Court, or if it has state jurisdiction, a lower state court. Once it is heard here, the lawyer on the losing side can file an appeal with the Appeals Court, and the losing party there can then file an appeal with the Supreme Court, which decides whether or not to hear the case.
449996
One of two ways. Either direct appeal from a decision of a three-judge panel at the circuit court level (usually an injunction), or through acceptance of a case by 4 or more Supreme Court justices from appeal from a Federal Court of Appeals. The latter is called Certiorari.
1062020
Federal has a greater jurisdiction or control area than the State has. Feds. also have much more power and control than the State does.
1160175
Precedent is only binding on lower courts, so District Court rulings do not apply to other District Courts, but a Court of Appeals ruling would apply to all District Courts in the circuit, while a Supreme Court ruling apples to all District Courts and Courts of Appeals in all circuits.\n\nAlso, state court rulings are never binding on other states' courts, even if they are in the same circuit.
369591
Yes, the District of Columbia has its own court system apart from the Federal Court system.  Like most states, DC has its own trial court of general jurisdiction (DC Superior Court).  The Superior Court is divided into Civil, Criminal, Family, Domestic Violence, and Probate Divisions.\nThe Court of Appeals is the highest court in DC (it is the equivalent of a state supreme court).
725889
"Diversity jurisdiction" explains how what might otherwise be a state law claim can end up in federal court.  It requires--and this is somewhat oversimplified--that the plaintiff allege (in good faith) more than $75,000 in damages and that the plaintiff and defendant be domiciled (residents) in different states (again, for the purposes of this answer a corporation can be deemed domiciled where incorporated or where its principle place of business is).\n\nSometimes a plaintiff will file in state court but a defendant will seek to have the case "removed" to federal court.  Likewise a federal court may sometimes send a case back to state court (say if the diversity requirement is not satisfied).\n\nAs a final point, the federal courts have original jurisdiction over federal claims (cases the turn on interpretation of federal laws or constitutional issues) and the US supreme court may review state supreme court decisions that raise federal questions (for example the recent Kelo decision in which the question was raised whether or not New Haven Connecticut's redevelopment plan violated te 5th Amendment's takings clause).
58435
Your question is unclear.\n\nThere is, obviously, one Supreme Court.\n\nThere are 11 US Courts of Appeal (also a court for the District of Columbia {tax court, fed admin agencies} and Federal {patent, claims court, veterans' appeals}).\n\nThere is a District Court in every state (some states have several/many) and the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands.\n\nThere is also personal jurisdiction (over the individual/entity) and subject matter jurisdiction.         These exist, of course, in every state.
463887
There is no inherent difference between the two.  They are not mutually exclusive.\n\nParliamentary democracies are, basically, those in which the head of government is the leader of the party, or coalition of parties, that holds a majority in at least one chamber of the legistlative branch.  This is different from the US-style "Presidential" democracy, in which the head of government is the chief of the executive branch.\n\nA federal democracy is a democratic form of federation; the democratic part simply indicates that ultimate decision-making power is given to the people.  A federation is a central government that permits some amount of sovereignty and decision-making power in subordinate governmental bodies within the federation.  A familiar example might be the US States, which retain significant authority although they are subordinate to the federal United States Government.\n\nIndia is both a federal democracy and a parliamentary democracy.  That proves there is a distinction but not a difference between the two.
146691
Are you talking about NY, CA or some other state? Superior Courts are different in the various states.
896956
Federal trump state. State trumps local. Constitution trumps statute. Statute trumps case law.\n\nSo, from the top -- federal constitutional text, then US Supreme Court interpreting federal constitution, then federal statute, then other federal case law, then state constitution, etc....\n\nAs far as one state relative to another, neither is binding on the other.
251835
A case can come before the Supreme Court if a constitutional issue needs to be resolved.  It hears appeals from state supreme courts or federal circuit courts at the court's discretion (meaning it doesn't have to hear your case if it doesn't want to).  It also has original jurisdiction (meaning it can hear a case for the first time) over certain issues like controversies between states or controversies between the President and someone else.
1027573
There is actually, ideologically one judiciary. But there are 50 courts. One for each state. \n\nIn each state there are district courts and there are circuit courts. \n\nDistrict courts basically cover criminal cases for states and commonwealths. Most of the time criminal cases are tried in district court if they are murder, larceny, burglary, rape, violence, and drug stuff.  But not always. In some states they include things like discrimination, jurisdictional disputes between state and local governments and a plethora of other serious things. \n\nCircuit Courts basically hear family law, civil stuff like money issues, divorces, lawsuits against neighbors, tort claims and civil stuff that isn't criminal. But each state has the authority to paint its own definition of the courts by legislation. \n\nAppellate courts are for appeals after one court or another has ruled. Like if Ford Motor Company gets into a fight with Firestone Tires and the courts award one side a billion dollars in damages and then the other side goes to court and appeals the money settlement arguing that the side that won a billion dollars got an excessive fine imposed and that it is unconstitutional to fine excessively. \n\nThe U.S. Supreme Court only hears Constitutional issues on matters that come from lower courts, appellate courts and district courts. If it isn't a Constitutional question, the U.S. Supreme Court doesn't hear it. \n\nAlmost all courts in this country are State Courts. Unless the crime is federal, like bank robbery or drug trafficking where you get picked up by the DEA or if you firebomb a bunch of log trucks in a Forest Service forest, you will not end up in Federal Court. The federal courts only hear federal crimes. \n\nMost of the crimes in this country are the jurisdiction of the state courts. They are the courts for issues, which, under MOST circumstances, are petty. Like juvenile courts where a kid shoplifts a pack of cigarettes from a convenience store. Or where a dog jumps the fence and goes into the neighbors yard and bites the homeowner next door. Serious, but not on the same level as murder or raping a 10 year old girl. And then there is traffic court. Traffic courts are like ticket courts where you get a fine for driving over the speed limit, parking in the mayor's spot at the mall or running over a fire hydrant when you are coming home from work. \n\nGranted there are severe issues heard in these courts, too. Like a 15 year old who gets tried in juvenile court for murdering his mother, or dog court where a guy doesn't have a dog, but he has a tiger in his back yard and the neighbors are scared shitless. And there is always the drunk driver who gets into an 18 wheeler full of produce and hauls off down an Indiana highway and runs into 3 school busses full of children on their way home from Vacation Bible School whose case gets heard in traffic court, first, at least. \n\nSo the courts all have different jurisdictions and they all handle basically similar but not all the same types of cases. It depends on your state which jurisdictions those courts have in common with other states.
1089374
Federal judges use a published guideline to help them determine whether or not a defendant serves time and how much time they will serve.\nIt is fairly complicated but you can try to wade through it and see how close you come to the decision that the Judge will make.
541653
There is only one Supreme Court of the United States.  Each State may also have its own Supreme Court to be the final authority on State Law, but the Federal Court system has only one Supreme Court.\n\nThe Supreme Court issues the highest ruling which cannot be appealed.  You can't present a case directly to the Supreme Court.  You have to present a case that says a lower court incorrectly ruled on a case.  Then the Supreme Court has to agree to hear the case.  If they do hear it, they'll issue a ruling that either lets the lower court's ruling stand, sends it back to the lower court for reconsideration (sometimes with additional instruction), or they may overturn the lower court's decision.