Why is judicial review important

The Court has original jurisdiction a case is tried before the Court over certain cases, e. 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. When exercising its appellate jurisdiction, the Court, with a few exceptions, does not have to hear a case. The Certiorari Act of 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 Supreme Court agrees to hear about of the more than 7, cases that it is asked to review each year. 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 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 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.

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 , the provisions of the Bill of Rights were only applicable to the federal government. In most other democracies, a special constitutional court, whose sole function is to consider the constitutionality of government actions, exercises constitutional review.

Meanwhile, other courts resolve issues that pertain strictly to statutory interpretation, without any involvement of the constitutional court.

The constitutional courts of other democracies may provide advisory or binding opinions about the constitutionality of an act separate from the adversarial process in which a real case involving the act at issue is brought to the court by a prosecutor or someone filing suit against another party.

However, the essence of judicial review, as invented and practiced in the United States, is similar to constitutional review used in other democratic countries. Several constitutional democracies, such as the Netherlands and Great Britain, do not practice judicial review.

The rule of law is maintained in these countries through the democratic political process, especially elections, whereby the government is held accountable to the people.

However, judicial review or constitutional review seems to be an especially strong means to protect the rights of minorities against the threat of oppression by a tyrannical majority of the people acting through its representatives in the government. Home Judicial Review. If two laws conflict with each other, the Court must decide on the operation of each.

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