Question: what is the primary jurisdiction of the u.s. supreme court

title: Jurisdiction stripping
text: Congress may define the jurisdiction of the judiciary through the simultaneous use of two powers . First , Congress holds the power to create ( and , implicitly , to define the jurisdiction of ) federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court ( i.e. Courts of Appeals , District Courts , and various other Article I and Article III tribunals ) . This court - creating power is granted both in the congressional powers clause ( Art . I , § 8 , Cl. 9 ) and in the judicial vesting clause ( Art . III , § 1 ) . Second , Congress has the power to make exceptions to and regulations of the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court . This court - limiting power is granted in the Exceptions Clause ( Art . III , § 2 ) . By exercising these powers in concert , Congress may effectively eliminate any judicial review of certain federal legislative or executive actions and of certain state actions , or alternatively transfer the judicial review responsibility to state courts by `` knocking ( federal courts ) ... out of the game . ''