SOC 205 Week 11 Quiz 4

Question 1 

There are some areas identified as needing judicial innovation because of legislative inaction. Which of the following is not a part of judicial innovation?

 

Death row appeals

 

Equal accommodations

 

Housing

 

Race relations

Question 2 

The realist-behaviorist view suggests that judicial decision making is essentially the product of

 

extralegal factors.

 

laws.

 

precedent.

 

facts.

Question 3 

A value held by trial and appellate judges is a commitment to follow precedents. This doctrine of ___ is a cardinal principle of the common law tradition.

 

voir dire

 

nolle prosequi

 

stare decisis

 

amicus curiae

Question 4 

Which of the following is part of the three-step process described by the doctrine of precedent?

 

Two cases have to be in the same jurisdiction.

 

A case has to be a criminal case.

 

The rule of law is made applicable to a 2nd case.

 

The judge has to invoke stare decisis.

Question 5 

In the 1964 segregation case “Evers v. Jackson Municipal Separate School District”, what is the name of the federal trial judge who was a segregationist that presided over that case?

 

Judge Susan Garsh

 

Judge Roger Vinson

 

Norman Moon

 

Judge Sidney Mize

Question 6 

Which of the following sources of influence on judicial decision making is not considered part of the democratic subculture?

 

public opinion

 

professional-social groups whose members are from both bench and bar

 

localism

 

the legislative and executive branches of government

Question 7 

What landmark case did the Supreme Court uphold involving a key provision of the Affordable Care Act in a 6-3 ruling?

 

Obergefell v. Hodges

 

King v. Burwell

 

Lane v. Wilson

 

Gomillion v. Lightfoot

Question 8 

Judges who consider themselves lawmakers have a:

 

broad view of the judicial role.

 

narrow view of the judicial role/

 

are staunch traditionalists.

 

are also pragmatists.

Question 9 

What is one way a lower court hears of rulings from a higher court?

 

Monthly law review of decisions in their circuit.

 

Regular research trips to the law library.

 

From lawyers presenting cases in their court.

 

From their legal interns.

Question 10 

Judicial policymaking in the era of criminal process is most closely associated with the era of the Warren Court. The Warren Court decisions were aimed primarily at changing the criminal procedures by the states in dealing with criminal defendants. Which of the following cases were not associated with the Warren Court era?

 

Miranda v. Arizona

 

Gratz v. Bollinger

 

Gideon v. Wainwright

 

Mapp v. Ohio

Question 11 

How can Congress alter a court’s decision?

 

Create another statute that overturns a court’s decision.

 

Issue an executive order counteracting it.

 

Direct the courts to reverse its decision.

 

Nullify the jury involved the case.

Question 12 

How can Congress alter a court’s decision?

 

Create another statute that overturns a court’s decision.

 

Issue an executive order counteracting it.

 

Direct the courts to reverse its decision.

 

Nullify the jury involved the case.

Question 13 

Why do courts have a larger role in developing national policies that what the framers of the Constitution had originally intended?

 

They have a larger caseload than in historic times.

 

Congress has expanded their powers to rule on laws.

 

Civil rights groups are using court cases to affect policy.

 

Cases about new technology means new case law not covered under the Constitution.

Question 14 

Why do courts have a larger role in developing national policies that what the framers of the Constitution had originally intended?

 

They have a larger caseload than in historic times.

 

Congress has expanded their powers to rule on laws.

 

Civil rights groups are using court cases to affect policy.

 

Cases about new technology means new case law not covered under the Constitution.

Question 15 

Define dicta.

 

Directing the court reporter to read back what was just said.

 

The legal definition of a witness statement.

 

Guidance that is included in a legal opinion.

 

Testimony that is struck from the record.

Question 16 

Define dicta.

 

Directing the court reporter to read back what was just said.

 

The legal definition of a witness statement.

 

Guidance that is included in a legal opinion.

 

Testimony that is struck from the record.

Question 17 

The contention that goal-directed justices operate in strategic or inter-dependent decision-making contexts best describes

 

attitude theory.

 

social leadership on the Court.

 

task leadership on the Court.

 

rational choice theory.

Question 18 

What is a difference between the chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and the chief justice of State Supreme Courts?

 

State chief justices always write the majority opinion of the case.

 

State chief justice appointments are determined by the state and not necessarily by the president.

 

SCOTUS chief justices service for life and state chief justices serve for fixed terms.

 

SCOTUS chief justices choose the court docket whereas state chief justices have to confer with their co-justices.

Question 19 

A judge might open to sound legal reasoning and legal precedents because of:

 

Fluidity

 

Quid pro quo

 

Bargaining

 

Persuasion on the merits

Question 20 

Which cue would make a case most likely to be heard by the Supreme Court?

 

Time spent in the lower courts.

 

Personal interest to the justices.

 

If a civil rights issue was debated.

 

Thoroughness of petition submitted.

Question 21 

In addition to persuasion on the merits and bargaining, there is one other tactic that jurists use in their effort to maximize their impact on multimember appellate tribunals, the threat of sanctions. Which of the following is not a sanction used by these judges?

 

Willingness to write a strong dissenting opinion

 

Go public

 

Withdraw their Vote

 

Persuade other judges to vote against you

Question 22 

What is one major difference between the US Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice?

 

The US Supreme Court hears a fraction of the cases that are submitted to it. The European Court of Justice has to hear all of the courses that are submitted to it.

 

The US Supreme Court justices are all appointed by the president. The European Court of Justice justices are elected from their member countries.

 

The European Court of Justice doesn’t actually hear arguments by lawyers. They just review legal briefings submitted by lawyers on each side of the case.

 

The European Court of Justice has not legal power. They can only offer opinions as to how lower courts should rule in each case.

Question 23 

Of the approximately seven thousand petitions presented to the U.S. Supreme Court each year, the justices agree to hear only ____ on the merits.

 

four thousand

 

two thousand

 

a few hundred

 

fifty

Question 24 

If a case contained all three cues, what is the percentage that a certiorari would be granted?

 

50 percent

 

70 percent

 

80 percent

 

90 percent

Question 25 

Which of the following best describes cue theory?

 

Because Supreme Court justices receive so many petitions for review each year, they must look for readily identifiable characteristics that trigger a positive response as they decide whether to grant certiorari.

 

Justices want to influence the judgments of their colleagues and to be on the winning side as often as possible.

 

Justices view cases primarily in terms of the broad political and socioeconomic issues they raise and they generally respond to these issues in accordance with their personal values and attitudes.

 

A good deal of interaction takes place among the justices from the time a case is first discussed in conference to the moment the final decision is rendered.