The Judiciary Act of 1789 fixed the federal courts’ three-level structure

Evidence

The structure of both federal and state court systems has changed over time, largely in response to increases in population and the demand for court services. For the federal courts, the changes have been less dramatic. The Judiciary Act of 1789 created the three-level structure of the federal judicial system that has remained to the present day. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, however, Congress established an entirely new set of courts, the courts of appeals, and eliminated the circuit courts. Congress also granted the U.S. Supreme Court the discretion to set its own agenda, thus facilitating its transformation into a court that deals primarily with constitutional issues. Another recent change has been the proliferation of specialized federal courts, though most cases continue to be resolved by the federal district courts and courts of appeals. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 349

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Congress creates all federal courts below the Supreme Court under Article III — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 223; The Judiciary Act of 1789 created six-justice Supreme Court and two trial tiers — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 232; Partisan conflicts shaped the early structure of the federal judiciary — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 234 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• The federal judiciary is a three-tiered structure of trial, first-level, and last-resort courts. #corroborates (0.95) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 226
• The Judiciary Act of 1789 created courts whose structure survives today #expands (0.92) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 278