Appellate jurisdiction for the Supreme Court occurs when there is an appeal from the Supreme Courts of the various states. Most appeals from the district courts go to one of the 13 circuit courts of appeals. The decisions fo the circuit courts are usually final. Appeals of the decisions of federal administrative agencies are also made to the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals. All states have general trial courts.
Trial courts are courts of original jurisdiction.
General trial courts handle nearly all important disputes involving contracts, criminal law, and corporations. Smaller courts, called magistrate courts, hear minor violations of the law. State appellate courts hear appeals from the trial courts. Some state have special courts that handle small or minor cases. The proceedings are usually quite informal and the parties involved usually appear without lawyers to represent them.