Supreme Court case review begins with a certiorari petition

Evidence

The Process of Case Selection The process by which the justices select cases for review begins with the party appealing the lower court’s decision petitioning the Court for a writ of certiorari-from the Latin, “made more certain”-asking that the Court hear the case. The various justices, in conjunction with their law clerks (see Box 5.4), review the petitions and individually determine which cases they believe merit consideration. The chief justice prepares and circulates a “discuss list,” which includes the cases he believes warrant collective consideration, Imagine being a recent law-school graduate and drafting judicial opinions for the U. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 904

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines ‘writ of certiorari’ (‘made more certain’) and introduces the chief justice’s discuss list mechanism.
• XREF: connects to: The Supreme Court accepts under 2 percent of petitions each year — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 897; Four votes are required to grant certiorari for Supreme Court review — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 911; Law clerks screen certiorari petitions and recommend whether the Court should grant review. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1501 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• Four votes are required to grant certiorari for Supreme Court review #expands (0.92) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 911
• Four justices voting to hear a case triggers Supreme Court review #expands (0.90) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 911
• Law clerks screen certiorari petitions and recommend whether the Court should grant review. #expands (0.88) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1501
• Justices may grant review to correct lower court rulings they oppose. #expands (0.82) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1530
• First-level appellate courts must hear all appeals brought before them #qualifies (0.78) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1585