The U.S. Legal Syste: A Short Desc

Background

The U.S. Constitution establishes a federal (national) system of government, to which it gives specific 

powers. All power not delegated to the federal government remains with the 50 states. Each state has its 

own state constitution, governmental structure, legal codes, and judiciary.

Article III of the Constitution vests judicial authority of the federal government in one Supreme 

Court and lower courts created by the U.S. Congress. Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction only over 

certain types of cases, principally those involving federal laws, foreign governments, and controversies 

between states. In certain other areas federal courts share jurisdiction with state courts. For example, both 

federal and state courts may decide cases involving parties who live in different states. State courts have 

exclusive jurisdiction over the vast majority of cases.

Most legal disputes in the United States are resolved by legal motion or settlement, though parties 

have a right to trial by jury in all criminal and most civil cases. A jury panel usually consists of 12 citizens 

who hear the evidence and apply the law, stated by the judge, to reach a decision. The facts of the case, as 

the jury determines them from evidence at trial, form the basis of this decision.

Structure of the Federal Court System

Congress has established two levels of federal courts below the Supreme Court: the U.S. district courts 

and the U.S. circuit courts of appeals. U.S. district courts are the courts of first instance in the federal 

system. There are 94 district courts throughout the nation. At least one district court is located in each 

state. District judges sit individually to hear cases. In addition to district judges, bankruptcy judges (who 

hear only bankruptcy cases) and magistrate judges (who perform many judicial duties under the general 

supervision of district judges) are located within the district courts.

U.S. circuit courts of appeals are on the next level. There are 12 of these regional intermediate 

appellate courts located in different parts of the country. Panels of three [circuit?] judges hear appeals 

from the district courts. A party to a case may appeal as a matter of right to the circuit court (except that 

the government has no right of appeal in a criminal case if the verdict is “not guilty.”) Circuit courts also 

hear appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies. One nonregional circuit court, the Federal 

Circuit, hears appeals in specialized cases, such as those involving patent laws and claims against the 

federal government.

Federal Judicial Center

International Judicial Relations Office

One Columbus Circle NE

Washington DC 20002-8003

www.fjc.gov

President with Senate confirmation. The chief prosecutors in the federal court districts are called U.S. 

attorneys and are also appointed by the President with Senate confirmation. Within the Department of 

Justice is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which investigates crimes against the United States.

Each state also has an attorney general in the state executive branch who is usually elected by the citizens of that state. There are also prosecutors in different regions of the state, called state’s attorneys or 

district attorneys. These prosecutors are also usually elected.

Lawyers

The U.S. legal system uses the adversarial process. Lawyers are essential to this process. Lawyers are 

responsible for presenting their clients’ evidence and legal arguments to the court. Based on the lawyers’ 

presentations, a trial judge or jury determines the facts and applies the law to reach a decision before 

judgment is entered.

Individuals are free to represent themselves in American courts, but lawyers are often necessary 

to present cases effectively. An individual who cannot afford to hire a lawyer may attempt to obtain one 

through a local legal aid society. Persons accused of crimes who cannot afford a lawyer are represented 

by a court-appointed attorney or by federal or state public defender offices.

American lawyers are licensed by the individual states in which they practice law. There is no 

national authority that licenses lawyers. Most states require applicants to hold a law degree ( Juris 

Doctor) from an accredited law school. An American law degree is a postgraduate degree awarded at 

the end of a three-year course of study. (Normally individuals complete four years of college/university 

before attending law school.) Also, most states require that applicants for a license to practice law pass 

a written bar examination and meet certain standards of character. Some states allow lawyers to become 

bar members based on membership in another state’s bar. All states provide for out-of-state lawyers to 

practice in the state in a particular case under certain conditions. Lawyers can engage in any kind of 

practice. Although there is no formal distinction among types of legal practice, there is much informal 

specialization.
At the top of the federal court system is the U.S. Supreme Court, made up of nine justices who 

sit together to hear cases. At its discretion, the U.S. Supreme Court may hear appeals from the federal 

circuit courts of appeals as well as the highest state courts if the appeal involves the U.S. Constitution or 

federal law.

Structure of the Court Systems

The structure of state court systems varies from state to state. Each state court system has unique 

features; however, some generalizations can be made. Most states have courts of limited jurisdiction 

presided over by a single judge who hears minor civil and criminal cases. States also have general jurisdiction trial courts that are presided over by a single judge. These trial courts are usually called circuit 

courts or superior courts and hear major civil and criminal cases. Some states have specialized courts 

that hear only certain kinds of cases such as traffic or family law cases.

All states have a highest court, usually called a state supreme court, that serves as an appellate 

court. Many states also have an intermediate appellate court called a court of appeals that hears appeals 

from the trial court. A party in a case generally has one right of appeal.

Court Administration

The judicial branches of the federal and state governments are separate from the legislative and executive branches. To ensure judicial independence, the judicial branches of the federal and state governments control the administration of the courts. Court administration includes managing court budgets, 

prescribing rules of trial and appellate procedure, reviewing judicial discipline matters, offering continuing educational programs for judges, and studying court performance.

In the federal judiciary, the Judicial Conference of the United States has overall administrative 

responsibility for the courts, as well as primary authority to make policy regarding the operation of the 

judicial branch of the government. Made up of 27 members (the Chief Justice of the United States 

and 26 judges from each geographic region of the United States), the Judicial Conference is assisted 

by a large number of committees made up of federal judges (and sometimes also state court judges 

and attorneys), who study different parts of the federal court system and make recommendations. An 

important responsibility of the Judicial Conference is to recommend changes in the rules of procedure 

used by all federal courts.

Congress has created three administrative agencies within the judicial branch. The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts manages the day-to-day operations of the courts, including such matters 

as payroll, equipment, and supplies. The Federal Judicial Center conducts educational and training 

programs for judges and court personnel and does research in the fields of court operations and administration. The U.S. Sentencing Commission develops advisory guidelines for federal judges in imposing 

criminal sentences.

In most state court systems, the state supreme court has overall administrative authority over the 

court system. It is assisted by an administrative office. The chief justice of the state supreme court usually appoints the director of the state court administrative office.

Judges

Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court and circuit and district judges are appointed by the President of 

the United States if approved by a majority vote of the U.S. Senate. These justices and judges serve 

“during good behavior”— in effect, a life term. Presidents usually nominate persons to be judges who are 

members of their own political party. Persons appointed are usually distinguished lawyers, law professors, or lower federal court or state court judges. Once these judges are appointed, their salaries cannot 

be reduced. Federal judges may only be removed from office through an impeachment process in which 

charges are made by the House of Representatives and a trial is conducted by the Senate. In the entire 

history of the United States, only a few judges have been impeached, and those removed were found 

to have committed serious misconduct. These protections allow federal judges to exercise independent 

judgment without political or outside interference or influence.

The methods of selecting state judges vary from state to state and are often different within a state, 

depending on the type of court. The most common selection systems are by commission nomination 

and by popular election. In the commission nomination system, judges are appointed by the governor 

(the state’s chief executive), who must choose from a list of candidates selected by an independent commission made up of lawyers, legislators, lay citizens, and sometimes judges. In many states judges are selected by popular election, which may be partisan or nonpartisan. Candidates for judicial appointment or 

election must meet certain qualifications, such as being a practicing lawyer for a certain number of years. 

With very few exceptions, state judges serve specified, renewable terms. All states have procedures 

governing judicial conduct, discipline, and removal. In both the federal and state systems, judicial candidates are almost always lawyers with many years of experience. There is no specific course of training for 

judges and no examination. Some states require judges to attend continuing education programs to learn 

about developments in the law. Both the federal and state court systems offer beginning and continuing 

education programs for judges.

Prosecutors

Prosecutors in the federal system are part of the U.S. Department of Justice in the executive branch. 

The Attorney General of the United States, who heads the Department of Justice, is appointed by the