Title: How Does the Executive Branch Check the Judicial Branch?
Headings: SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips
SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips
How Does the Executive Branch Check the Judicial Branch?
The Three Branches of the United States Government
The Judicial Branch: Definition and Explanation
The U.S. Supreme Court
Federal Appellate Courts
The Executive Branch: Definition and Explanation
The Presidency
How Does the Executive Branch Check the Judicial Branch?
Judicial-Executive Checks on Power
Appointing Federal Judges
Nominating Supreme Court Justices
Pardon Power
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Ashley Robinson
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Content: The Judicial Branch: Definition and Explanation
The judicial branch of the federal government is tasked with interpreting the laws, including Constitutional laws, which are created by the legislative branch. This happens through the court system, where attorneys bring cases before a judge (and sometimes jury). When a judge makes a ruling on a case, they are actually interpreting the law. That means they’re reading the laws and determining whether a defendant has actually broken them or not. In some federal cases, judges are actually evaluating the laws themselves to determine if they’re in violation of the constitution! For instance, in the famous case of Brown v. the Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that laws requiring the racial segregation of schools were unconstitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court
While the U.S. judicial system is vast--there are both state and federal courts, each with different organizational hierarchies--they both operate under the Supreme Court of the United States (or SCOTUS). Understanding what the Supreme Court is and how it operates is key to understanding how the executive branch can check the power of the judicial branch. You may have heard of the Supreme Court referred to as “the highest court in the land.”