Introduction:
The objective of this assignment is to understand the importance of definitions and to convey a complex term to varying audiences by tailoring the level of details according to its particular situtation. As such, students are to describe a complex term using a parenthetical definition, sentence definition, and expanded definition tailored to a specific, non-technical audience.
Term: Judicial Review
Target Audience and Situation
The situation for which this term would be used is when a lawyer explains to their client the definition of Judicial Review in order to understand how their personal case can reach the Supreme Court to undergo this review.
Parenthetical Definition
Judicial review (process to ensure fair and constitutional decision making by all governmental bodies) was used in the Dred Scott Case in 1857.
Sentence Definition
Judicial Review is the power of the ultimate level of the judiciary branch– the Supreme Court – to declare the actions of the legislative and executive branches unconstitutional.
Expanded Defintion
History – What is the history of Judicial Review?
The concept of Judicial Review was established by the U.S. Supreme Court in the landmark case Marbury v. Madison (1803), where Chief Justice John Marshall declared that it was the responsibility of the courts to say what the law is, and that if a law is inconsistent with the Constitution, it is void (Singh, 2018). Since then, Judicial Review has become a central feature of the US system of government, and has been adopted by countries across the world.
Required Conditions – Under what condition should Judicial Review be used?
The conditions under which Judicial Review may be used varies depending on the jurisdiction, but generally it is use when:
- The case involves a dispute between the Country and one of its states/provinces;
- The case involves a dispute between two or more states/provinces, at least one of whom is claiming that their constitutional rights have been violated;
- The case rose from lower level courts to the Supreme Court;
- A law or executive action is challenged as being in violation of the Constitution or a federal law or;
- The matter is of sufficient importance to warrant the attention of the courts, and the parties involved cannot resolve the issue through means other than judicial review (Gailmard et al., 2017).
Analysis of Parts – What are the parts involving Judicial Review?
The United States, for example, has a dual court system, meaning that there are two separate and distinct court systems operating at the federal and state levels, with one overarching US Supreme Court. Going through each level is among the few ways a case can get to Judicial Review.
The federal court system is responsible for interpreting and enforcing federal law, as well as hearing cases arising under the Constitution, federal law, and treaties. The federal court system consists of two levels:
- The lower federal district courts and;
- The intermediate appellate courts
The state court system is responsible for interpreting and enforcing state law and hearing cases arising under the laws and constitution of each individual state. The structure of state court systems can vary, but typically consists of three levels:
- Trial court;
- Appellate court and;
- State Supreme Court (Gailmard et al., 2017).
Visual: U.S. Dual Court System and Judicial Review
Figure 1. A visualization of the U.S. dual court system leading to judicial review
Example – How is Judicial Review applied?
An important case that used Judicial Review is Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. This case involved a challenge to the “separate but equal” legal doctrine, which allowed for segregation in public schools based on race. A group of African American parents and their children sued the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, arguing that segregation in public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (López, 2014).
Because a legal doctrine was being challenged as being a violation of the Constitution, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case through Judicial Review, and in a unanimous decision, the Court held that segregation in public schools was indeed unconstitutional (López, 2014). The Court found that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal and that segregation had a harmful impact on African American children and their ability to receive a quality education. The power of judicial review in Brown v. Board of Education allowed the Supreme Court to strike down a state law and a longstanding tradition of segregation as being in violation of the Constitution, thereby protecting the constitutional rights of African American citizens.
Work Cited
Gailmard, S., & Patty, J. W. (2017). Participation, process and policy: The informational value of politicised judicial review. Journal of Public Policy, 37(3), 233-260. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/S0143814X16000106
Libretexts. (2020, July 27). The Dual Court System. Social Sci LibreTexts. Retrieved February 9, 2023, from https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Courses/Achieving_the_Dream/Book%3A_American_Government_%28Scanlon%29/13%3A_Module_11%3A_The_Courts/13.3%3A_The_Dual_Court_System
López, G. R., & Burciaga, R. (2014). The troublesome legacy of Brown v. Board of Education. Educational Administration Quarterly, 50(5), 796-811.
Singh, Y. P. (2018). Judicial Review and Process of Judging: The Jurisprudential Analysis. Journal of the Indian Law Institute, 60(1), 58–78. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26826625
Leave a Reply