Introduction:

the American Supreme Court

Read the following text then answer the questions below (tip: read the questions first, so
you know what information to look for)


Supreme Court Background

Article III of the Constitution establishes the federal judiciary. Article III, Section I states that
"The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such
inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish." Although the
5 Constitution establishes the Supreme Court, it permits Congress to decide how to organize it.
Congress first exercised this power in the Judiciary Act of 1789. This Act created a Supreme
Court with six justices. It also established the lower federal court system.

The Justices

Over the years, various Acts of Congress have altered the number of seats on the Supreme
10 Court, from a low of five to a high of 10. Shortly after the Civil War, the number of seats on
the Court was fixed at nine. Today, there is one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices of
the United States Supreme Court. Like all federal judges, justices are appointed by the
President and are confirmed by the Senate. They, typically, hold office for life. The salaries of
the justices cannot be decreased during their term of office. These restrictions are meant to
15 protect the independence of the judiciary from the political branches of government.

The Court's Jurisdiction

Article III, Section II of the Constitution establishes the jurisdiction (legal ability to hear a case)
of the Supreme Court. The Court has original jurisdiction (a case is tried before the Court) over
certain cases, e.g., suits between two or more states and/or cases involving ambassadors and
20 other public ministers. The Court has appellate jurisdiction (the Court can hear the case on
appeal) on almost any other case that involves a point of constitutional and/or federal law.
Some examples include cases to which the United States is a party, cases involving Treaties,
and cases involving ships on the high seas and navigable waterways (admiralty cases).

Cases

25 When exercising its appellate jurisdiction, the Court, with a few exceptions, does not have to
hear a case. The Certiorari Act of 1925 gives the Court the discretion to decide whether or not
to do so. In a petition for a writ of certiorari, a party asks the Court to review its case. The

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 Supreme Court agrees to hear about 100-150 of the more than 7,000 cases that it is asked to
review each year.

30 Judicial Review

The best-known power of the Supreme Court is judicial review, or the ability of the Court to
declare a Legislative or Executive act in violation of the Constitution, is not found within the
text of the Constitution itself. The Court established this doctrine in the case of Marbury v.
Madison (1803).

35 In this case, the Court had to decide whether an Act of Congress or the Constitution was the
supreme law of the land. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave the Supreme Court original jurisdiction
to issue writs of mandamus (legal orders compelling government officials to act in accordance
with the law). A suit was brought under this Act, but the Supreme Court noted that the
Constitution did not permit the Court to have original jurisdiction in this matter. Since Article
40 VI of the Constitution establishes the Constitution as the Supreme Law of the Land, the Court
held that an Act of Congress that is contrary to the Constitution could not stand. In subsequent
cases, the Court also established its authority to strike down state laws found to be in violation
of the Constitution.

Before the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment (1869), the provisions of the Bill of Rights
45 were only applicable to the federal government. After the Amendment's passage, the
Supreme Court began ruling that most of its provisions were applicable to the states as well.
Therefore, the Court has the final say over when a right is protected by the Constitution or
when a Constitutional right is violated.

Role

50 The Supreme Court plays a very important role in our constitutional system of government.
First, as the highest court in the land, it is the court of last resort for those looking for justice.
Second, due to its power of judicial review, it plays an essential role in ensuring that each
branch of government recognizes the limits of its own power. Third, it protects civil rights and
liberties by striking down laws that violate the Constitution. Finally, it sets appropriate limits
55 on democratic government by ensuring that popular majorities cannot pass laws that harm
and/or take undue advantage of unpopular minorities. In essence, it serves to ensure that the
changing views of a majority do not undermine the fundamental values common to all
Americans, i.e., freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and due process of law.

http://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/about-educational-
outreach/activity-resources/about

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 1. Comprehension

a. Lines 1-7: What founding text establishes the Supreme Court?

b. Lines 8-15: How many Supreme Court Justices are there today? Can you guess why this
number was chosen? How do they get their jobs?

c. Lines 16-23: What is the difference between original jurisdiction and appellate
jurisdiction?

d. Lines 24-29: Does the Supreme Court have an obligation to hear a case?

e. Lines 24-29: How many cases does the Supreme Court hear annually?

f. Lines 30-48: What does it mean that the Supreme has the power of judicial review?

g. Lines 49-58: In a nutshell, what does the Supreme Court protect?

2. Vocabulary and pronunciation

a. Vocabulary: Match the terms with their translations

A founding text Etre nomm

A Supreme Court justice Avoir le dernier mot

To be appointed La guerre de Scession

The Civil War Faire appel

To appeal Une affaire / un dossier

A case Entendre / examiner un dossier

To hear a case Un texte fondateur

Examen de la constitutionalit (d'une

Judicial review
loi)

A suit / a lawsuit Un procs

To have the final say Un juge la Cour Suprme

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 b. Pronunciation

Underline the stressed syllable in the following words:

Constitution Independence Jurisdiction Discretion Supreme Article Federal
Judiciary Judicial Congress Organize Justice Amendment Important Review
Petition Violation Religion Exception Provision

What do you notice about the stress pattern of words that end with "ion"?


3. Grammar checkpoint: relative clauses

Extract from the text: "The Court has appellate jurisdiction () on almost any other case that
involves a point of constitutional and/or federal law. Some examples include cases to which
the United States is a party"

What are relative clauses?
- A relative clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a noun or a noun phrase.
Example: The man who is smoking is the murderer
- Relative clauses give essential information to define or identify the person or thing we are
talking about.

How to use relative clauses
They are used to provide extra information. This information can either:
- define something (defining clause). Example: The girl who is standing there is a world
champion in karate.
- or provide unnecessary, but interesting information (non-defining clause). Example: Michael
Jackson, who was a famous singer, died of an overdose.

Exercise 1: In the following sentences, write D next to sentences that include a defining
relative clause and ND next to the sentences that include a non-defining relative clause.
1. Im going to wear the skirt that I bought in London.
2. My grandfather, who is 87, goes swimming every day.
3. The book that I finished yesterday was very interesting.
4. This book, that I tried to read last month, was incredibly boring.

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Relative clauses can be introduced by:
- A relative pronoun: who, whom, which, that, whose. Example: The man who is standing there
is a famous writer.
- A relative adverb: where, why and when. Example: The restaurant where I have dinner is
nice.
- None of them. Example: The man I met is extremely wealthy

Relative Pronouns
- who: subject or object pronoun for people. Example: They caught the lady who killed her
baby.
- which: subject or object pronoun for inanimate things. Example: I read the book which is on
the table. I visited the town which you told me about.
- which: referring to a whole sentence. Example: They were unsuccessful which is
disappointing.
- whom: used for object pronoun for people, especially in non-restrictive relative clauses (in
restrictive relative clauses use who). Example: The boy whom you told me about got the best
grades in mathematics.
- whose is the possessive form of who. Example: My sister, whose baby-sitter is unavailable,
wants me to look after her kids.
- that: subject or object pronoun for people, animals and things in restrictive relative clauses
(who or which are also possible). Example: I like the vase that is over there.

Exercise 2: In the following sentences, fill in the blanks with a relative pronoun.
1. This is the man . saved the kid.
2. The house . windows are open is beautiful.
3. The writer . wrote that article won the Nobel Prize.
4. He bought a car . runs fast.
5. He was wearing a cap . was black.

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Relative adverbs
- where: referring to a place. Example: The restaurant where I usually have dinner is nice.
- when: referring to a time. Example: There are times when I feel so lonely.
- why: referring to a reason. Example: This is the reason why she refused the offer.
For "when" and "why" used as relative pronouns, it is not the same in French and in
English

Exercise 3: Translate the following sentences into English.
1. C'est la raison pour laquelle je ne peux pas venir.

2. Voici la maison o j'ai grandi.

3. J'attends le jour o je pourrai enfin conduire seule.

4. 1994 est l'anne o O.J. Simpson a t acquitt.


Exercise 4: Add the phrase in brackets to the sentence using a relative clause.
Example: The car is in the garage (the car broke down) = The car that broke down is in the
garage.

1) The doctor was sick (I wanted to see the doctor)

2) The accountant was arrested (the accountant works for my father's company)

3) I wrote to the friend (you met the friend last week)

4) The mobile phone can't be fixed (the mobile phone is broken)

5) John made a copy of the photo (I took the photo)

6) I met a girl (the girl was a doctor)

7) We called a doctor (the doctor works at a hospital in London)

8) We like the actor (the actor was in a famous film)

9) I went to the restaurant (I read about the restaurant in the newspaper)

10) She bought a car (her sister liked the car)