JUDICIAL BRANCH STUDY GUIDE 2026/2027
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔U.S. Magistrates - ✔✔Judges appointed by U.S. District Court judges to conduct
pretrial hearings and trials for minor civil and criminal offenses in Federal Court; 8 year
terms
✔✔rule of 4 - ✔✔four or more justices must vote to hear a case, then the case will be
heard (granted certiorari)
✔✔briefs - ✔✔documents setting out the arguments in legal cases, prepared by
attorneys and presented to courts
✔✔court in conference - ✔✔meeting of the full Court to discuss cases heard in oral
arguments; Chief Justice presides
✔✔majority opinion - ✔✔Officially called the Opinion of the Court; announces the
Court's decision in a case and sets out the reasoning upon which it is based
✔✔concurring opinion - ✔✔an opinion that agrees with the majority in a Supreme Court
ruling but differs on the reasoning
✔✔dissenting opinion - ✔✔an opinion disagreeing with the majority decision in a
Supreme Court ruling; may be looked at in the future
✔✔trial court - ✔✔the first court to hear a criminal or civil case; consider evidence and
make judgments based on facts, law and precedent
✔✔appeals court - ✔✔a court whose jurisdiction is to review decisions of lower courts or
agencies; not a new trial, checking for trial errors
✔✔stare decisis - ✔✔Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from
previous cases
✔✔precedent - ✔✔a ruling that is used as the basis for a judicial decision in a later,
similar case
✔✔writ of certiorari - ✔✔Order by the Supreme Court directing a lower court to send up
the records of a case for review
✔✔Federal District Court - ✔✔trial court of the federal court system; most cases heard
here
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔U.S. Magistrates - ✔✔Judges appointed by U.S. District Court judges to conduct
pretrial hearings and trials for minor civil and criminal offenses in Federal Court; 8 year
terms
✔✔rule of 4 - ✔✔four or more justices must vote to hear a case, then the case will be
heard (granted certiorari)
✔✔briefs - ✔✔documents setting out the arguments in legal cases, prepared by
attorneys and presented to courts
✔✔court in conference - ✔✔meeting of the full Court to discuss cases heard in oral
arguments; Chief Justice presides
✔✔majority opinion - ✔✔Officially called the Opinion of the Court; announces the
Court's decision in a case and sets out the reasoning upon which it is based
✔✔concurring opinion - ✔✔an opinion that agrees with the majority in a Supreme Court
ruling but differs on the reasoning
✔✔dissenting opinion - ✔✔an opinion disagreeing with the majority decision in a
Supreme Court ruling; may be looked at in the future
✔✔trial court - ✔✔the first court to hear a criminal or civil case; consider evidence and
make judgments based on facts, law and precedent
✔✔appeals court - ✔✔a court whose jurisdiction is to review decisions of lower courts or
agencies; not a new trial, checking for trial errors
✔✔stare decisis - ✔✔Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from
previous cases
✔✔precedent - ✔✔a ruling that is used as the basis for a judicial decision in a later,
similar case
✔✔writ of certiorari - ✔✔Order by the Supreme Court directing a lower court to send up
the records of a case for review
✔✔Federal District Court - ✔✔trial court of the federal court system; most cases heard
here
