Jurisdiction: Federal Court vs. State Court SystemsCourt Systems and Practices

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Outline of the Federal Court System

• Magistrate Courts• Trial Courts – US District Courts– US Bankruptcy Courts– US Court of International Trade– US Court of Federal Claims

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Outline of the Federal Court System (continued)

• Appellate Courts– US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit – Circuit Court of Appeals

• US Supreme Court• Other Federal Tribunals – US Tax Courts– Court of Veteran Appeals–Military Courts– Federal Administrative Agencies and Boards

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Jurisdiction of the Federal Courts

• Magistrate Court – limited jurisdiction• Trial Courts– US District Courts

• General trial jurisdiction• Both criminal and civil

– US Bankruptcy Courts – limited and exclusive jurisdiction

– US Court of International Trade – specialized jurisdiction

– US Court of Federal Claims – specialized jurisdiction

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Jurisdiction of the Federal Courts (continued)

• US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit– Intermediate appellate jurisdiction– Reviews appeals from specialized courts

• Court of International Trade• US Court of Federal Claims • Nationwide geographical jurisdiction

• Circuit Court of Appeals– Intermediate appellate jurisdiction– Reviews appeals from US District Courts

• Circuit determined by geographic location of lower federal court • 12 Regional Circuits

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Jurisdiction of the Federal Courts (continued)

• US Supreme Court– Court of last resort in the US– Appellate jurisdiction over cases that deal with the

Constitution or federal law– US Supreme Court has discretion regarding which cases

it will review– Cases usually begin in state court or federal court– Original and exclusive jurisdiction over:

• Proceedings against ambassadors or public ministers of foreign states; and

• All controversies between two or more states

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Jurisdiction of the Federal Courts (continued)

• Other Federal Tribunals–Military Courts– Court of Veteran Appeals– US Tax Court– Federal Administrative Agencies and Boards

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Outline of the State Court System (Texas)

• Justice of the Peace or Municipal Courts• County Courts

– Constitutional County Courts– Statutory County Courts at Law– Statutory Probate Courts

• District Courts• Courts of Appeals• Texas Supreme Court and the Court of Criminal Appeals• Other state tribunals

– State Office of Administrative Hearings– State Agencies and Boards

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas)

• Justice Courts– Limited jurisdiction– Original jurisdiction in Class C misdemeanor

criminal cases that are punishable by fine only– Civil matters not more than $10,000– Evictions (Landlord/Tenant law)

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas) (continued)

• Municipal Courts– Limited jurisdiction–Misdemeanors with fines less than $200– Exclusive original jurisdiction over municipal

ordinance violations– Limited civil jurisdiction

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas) (continued)

• County Courts– Limited jurisdiction– Constitutional County Courts• Have appellate jurisdiction over the justice courts,

municipal courts, and administrative hearings• Preside over Class A and Class B Misdemeanors• Original jurisdiction in civil cases from $200 to $10,000• Concurrent jurisdiction with justice of the peace and

district courts in civil cases in which the amount in controversy is small

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas) (continued)

• County Courts (continued)– County Court at Law

• Created by Legislature to aid the single constitutional county court

• Legal jurisdiction varies• Original, appellate, and concurrent jurisdiction are the same as

Constitutional County Court

– Statutory Probate Courts• Original and exclusive jurisdiction over their counties' probate

matters, guardianship cases, and mental health commitments• Legislature grants authority to certain county courts

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas) (continued)

• District Courts– General and Special Jurisdiction– Original jurisdiction• All felony criminal cases• Divorce cases• Title to land cases • Contested election cases• Civil matters of $200 or more

– Juvenile matters

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Jurisdiction of the State Courts (Texas) (continued)

• Courts of Appeals– Intermediate appellate jurisdiction – Both criminal and civil cases

• State of Texas Highest Appellate Courts– Texas Supreme Court• Final appellate jurisdiction in civil cases• Final appellate jurisdiction in juvenile cases

– Texas Court of Criminal Appeals • Final appellate jurisdiction in criminal cases

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Resources

• Prentice Hall, Criminal Courts: Structure, Process, and Issues (2nd Edition), 2007, Dean John Champion, Richard D. Hartley, & Gary A. Rabe.

• http://www.courts.state.tx.us/ • http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/get-informed/federal-court-basics/stru

cture-federal-courts.aspx

• http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/get-informed/federal-court-basics/understanding-federal-courts.aspx

• http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/get-informed/federal-court-basics/cases-federal-state-courts.aspx

• http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/get-informed/federal-court-basics/comparing-state-federal-courts.aspx

• http://www.courts.state.tx.us/pubs/court-overview.pdf • http://www.courts.state.tx.us/pubs/AR2010/jud_branch/2a-subject-matter-jurisdiction

-of-courts.pdf

• Outline of the US Legal System, Bureau of International Information Programs, United States Department of State, 2004, http://www.america.gov/media/pdf/books/legalotln.pdf