Tag: Judicial Power
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Real Interest
The Requirement of a Real InterestAlmost inseparable from the requirements of adverse parties and substantial enough interests to confer standing is the requirement that a real issue be presented, as contrasted with speculative, abstract, hypothetical, or moot issues. It has long been the Court'…
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Administrative Power
Contempt Power in Aid of Administrative PowerProceedings to enforce the orders of administrative agencies and subpoenas issued by them to appear and produce testimony have become increasingly common since the leading case of ICC v. Brimson,1 which he…
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Widespread Injuries
Generalized or Widespread InjuriesPersons do not have standing to sue in federal court when all they can claim is that they have an interest or have suffered an injury that is shared by all members of the public. Thus, a group of persons suing as citizens to litigate a contention that membership of …
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Political Questions History
Origins and DevelopmentIn the first decade after ratification of the Constitution, the Court in Ware v. Hylton 1 refused to pass on the question whether a treaty had been broken, and in Martin v. Mott,2</a…
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Power to Issue Writs
Power to Issue Writs: The Act of 1789From the beginning of government under the Constitution of 1789, Congress has assumed, under the Necessary and Proper Clause, its power to establish inferior courts, its power to regulate the jurisdiction of federal courts, and its power to regulate the issuance …
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Taxpayer Suits
Taxpayer SuitsSave for a narrow exception, standing is also lacking when a litigant attempts to sue to contest governmental action that he claims injures him as a taxpayer. In Frothingham v. Mellon,1 the Court denied standing to a taxpayer suing to r…
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Baker v. Carr
The Doctrine Before Baker v. CarrOver the years, the political question doctrine has been applied to preclude adjudication of a variety of other issues. In particular, prior to Baker v. Carr,1 cases challenging the distribution of political power thr…
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Common Law Powers
Common Law Powers of District of Columbia CourtsThe portion of § 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 that authorized the Supreme Court to issue writs of mandamus in the exercise of its original jurisdiction was held invalid in Marbury v. Madison,1 a…
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Constitutional Standards
Constitutional Standards: Injury in Fact, Causation, and RedressabilityAlthough the Court has been inconsistent, it has now settled upon the rule that "at an irreducible minimum" the constitutional requisites under Article III for the existence of standing are that the plaintiff must perso…
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Political Questions Doctrine
The Doctrine Before Baker v. CarrOver the years, the political question doctrine has been applied to preclude adjudication of a variety of other issues. In particular, prior to Baker v. Carr,1 cases challenging the distribution of political power thr…
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Process of the Writ
Habeas Corpus: The Process of the WritA petition for a writ of habeas corpus is filed by or on behalf of a person in "custody," a concept which has been expanded so much that it is no longer restricted to actual physical detention in jail or prison.<a name=t1 href=#f1 target="_self&qu…
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Prudential Standing Rules
Prudential Standing RulesEven when Article III constitutional standing rules have been satisfied, the Court has held that principles of prudence may counsel the judiciary to refuse to adjudicate some claims.1 The rule is "not meant to be especia…
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Powell v. McCormack
Powell v. McCormackBecause Baker had apparently restricted the political question doctrine to intrafederal issues, there was no discussion of the doctrine when the Court held that it had power to review and overturn a state legislature's refusal to seat a member-elect because of his expressed vi…
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Injunctive Power
Congressional Limitation of the Injunctive PowerAlthough some judicial dicta 1 support the idea of an inherent power of the federal courts sitting in equity to issue injunctions independently of statutory limitations, neither the course taken by Cong…
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Rights of Others
Standing to Assert the Rights of OthersUsually, one may assert only one's interest in the litigation and not challenge the constitutionality of a statute or a governmental action because it infringes the protectable rights of someone else.1 In Ti…