The courts of the United States are closely linked hierarchical systems of courts at the federal and state levels. The federal courts form the judicial branch of the

US government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...

and operate under the authority of the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the nat ...

and

federal law Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join in a federation, delegating their individual sovereignty and many po ...

. The state and territorial courts of the individual U.S. states and territories operate under the authority of the state and territorial constitutions and state and territorial law. Federal statutes that refer to the "courts of the United States" are referring only to the courts of the federal government, and not the courts of the individual states and counties. Because of the

federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of d ...

underpinnings of the division between sovereign federal and state governments, the various state court systems are free to operate in ways that vary widely from those of the federal government, and from one another. In practice, however, every state has adopted a division of its judiciary into at least two levels, and almost every state has three levels, with trial courts hearing cases which may be reviewed by

appellate court A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

s, and finally by a

state supreme court In the United States, a state supreme court (known by other names in some states) is the highest court in the state judiciary of a U.S. state. On matters of state law, the judgment of a state supreme court is considered final and binding i ...

. A few states have two separate supreme courts, with one having authority over civil matters and the other reviewing criminal cases. 47 states and the federal government allow at least one appeal of right from a final judgment on the merits, meaning that the court receiving the appeal ''must'' decide the appeal after it is briefed and argued properly. Three states do not provide a right to a first appeal. Rather, they give litigants only a right to ''petition'' for the right to have an appeal heard. State courts often have diverse names and structures, as illustrated below. State courts hear about 98% of litigation; most states have courts of special jurisdiction, which typically handle minor disputes such as traffic citations, and courts of general jurisdiction responsible for more serious disputes.American Bar Association (2004)
How the Legal System Works: The Structure of the Court System, State and Federal Courts
In ''ABA Family Legal Guide''. The U.S. federal court system hears cases involving litigants from two or more states, violations of federal laws, treaties, and the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these prin ...

, admiralty,

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

, and related issues. In practice, about 80% of the cases are civil and 20% criminal. The civil cases often involve civil rights, patents, and Social Security while the criminal cases involve tax fraud, robbery, counterfeiting, and drug crimes. The trial courts are

U.S. district courts The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district c ...

, followed by

United States courts of appeals The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal judiciary. The courts of appeals are divided into 11 numbered circuits that cover geographic areas of the United States and hear appeals fr ...

and then the Supreme Court of the United States. The judicial system, whether state or federal, begins with a court of first instance, whose work may be reviewed by an appellate court, and then ends at the court of last resort, which may review the work of the lower courts. Institutions which may be considered courts of the United States are listed below.

United States Federal Courts

US Court of Appeals and District Court map

Geographic based jurisdiction

* Trial Courts: United States district courts (see federal court sections by state below for specific district courts) ** List of United States district and territorial courts (94 courts, also listed by state below) * Appellate Courts:

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts * ...

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...

** United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ** United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit **

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * Eastern District of Louisiana * Mi ...

United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * Eastern District of Kentucky * Western District of ...

United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (in case citations, 7th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts: * Central District of Illinois * Northern District of ...

United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (in case citations, 8th Cir.) is a United States federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States district courts: * United States District Court for the Eastern ...

** United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit **

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (in case citations, 10th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Colorado * District of Kansas * Dist ...

United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (in case citations, 11th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following U.S. district courts: * Middle District of Alabama * Northern District of Alabama * ...

United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. federal appellate cou ...

Court of last resort A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

: ** Supreme Court of the United States

Specific subject-matter jurisdiction

* United States federal courts with Original Jurisdiction over specific subject matter: **

United States Tax Court The United States Tax Court (in case citations, T.C.) is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides (in part) that the Congress has the power to "constitute Tr ...

** Patent Trial and Appeal Board **

International Trade Commission The United States International Trade Commission (USITC or I.T.C.) is an agency of the United States federal government that advises the legislative and executive branches on matters of trade. It is an independent, bipartisan entity that analyz ...

United States Court of International Trade The United States Court of International Trade (case citations: Int'l Trade or Intl. Trade) is a U.S. federal court that adjudicates civil actions arising out of U.S. customs and international trade laws. Seated in New York City, it exerci ...

United States Court of Federal Claims The United States Court of Federal Claims (in case citations, Fed. Cl. or C.F.C.) is a United States federal court that hears monetary claims against the U.S. government. It was established by statute in 1982 as the United States Claims Court, ...

** United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ** United States bankruptcy courts ** Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ** United States Merit Systems Protection Board **

United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court The United States Alien Terrorist Removal Court is a special court in the United States created in 1996 which has never conducted proceedings. It consists of five Article III judges, selected by the Chief Justice of the United States. Its job is ...

* Courts with Appellate Jurisdiction over specific subject matter: **

United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (in case citations, Fed. Cir. or C.A.F.C.) is a United States court of appeals that has special appellate jurisdiction over certain types of specialized cases in the U.S. federal court ...

** United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces ***

United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals In the United States military, the Army Court of Criminal Appeals (ACCA) is an appellate court that reviews certain court martial convictions of Army personnel. Jurisdiction In the United States, courts-martial are conducted under the Uniform ...

***

Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals The Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals (NMCCA) is the intermediate appellate court for criminal convictions in the United States Navy and the Marine Corps. Courts-martial are conducted under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (Titl ...

***

Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals The Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals (AFCCA) is an independent appellate judicial body authorized by Congress and established by the Judge Advocate General of the Air Force pursuant to the exclusive authority under (a). The Court hears and ...

***

Coast Guard Court of Criminal Appeals The Coast Guard Court of Criminal Appeals (CGCCA) is the intermediate appellate court for criminal convictions in the U.S. Coast Guard. It is located in Washington, DC. The Court was established under Article 66, Uniform Code of Military Just ...

** United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims ** United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review ** United States Court of Military Commission Review ** Civilian Board of Contract Appeals ** Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals ** Postal Service Board of Contract Appeals ** Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition **

Board of Immigration Appeals The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is an administrative appellate body within the Executive Office for Immigration Review of the United States Department of Justice responsible for reviewing decisions of the U.S. immigration courts and cer ...

** Board of Veterans' Appeals

Former United States Courts

Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences The Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) was an administrative law body of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) which decided issues of patentability. Under the America Invents Act, the BPAI was replaced with the Pat ...

(before 2012) * Court of Appeals in Cases of Capture (1780–1789) * Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals (1971–1992) * United States circuit courts (1789–1911) * United States Commerce Court (1910–1913) *

United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes. History The CCPA began as the United States Court of Customs ...

(1909–1982) * United States Court of Private Land Claims (1891–1904) * United States Court for Berlin (1955–1990) *

United States District Court for the Canal Zone The United States District Court for the Canal Zone (in case citations, D.C.Z.) was a United States District Court that existed in the Panama Canal Zone of Panama from 1914 to 1982. Appeals were taken to the United States Court of Appeals for th ...

( -1982) * United States Court for China (1906–1943)

Courts by state of the United States

State supreme court In the United States, a state supreme court (known by other names in some states) is the highest court in the state judiciary of a U.S. state. On matters of state law, the judgment of a state supreme court is considered final and binding i ...

s ** State court (United States) ----

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Courts in the District of Columbia

* District of Columbia Court of Appeals **

Superior Court of the District of Columbia The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, commonly referred to as DC Superior Court, is the trial court for the District of Columbia, in the United States. It hears cases involving criminal and civil law, as well as family court, landlor ...

Federal courts located in the District of Columbia * Supreme Court of the United States **

***

United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a federal district court in the District of Columbia. It also occasionally handles (jointly with the United States District Court for the District o ...

***

*** United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims ***

** United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces ** United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review *** United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court Former federal courts in the District of Columbia * United States District Court for the District of Potomac (1801–1802; also contained pieces of Maryland and Virginia; extinct, reorganized) ----

Courts of the Territories of the United States

American Samoa

* High Court of American Samoa

Guam

* Supreme Court of Guam ** Superior Court of Guam

United States territorial court

District Court of Guam The District Court of Guam (in case citations, D. Guam) is a United States territorial court with jurisdiction over the United States territory of Guam. It sits in the capital, Hagåtña. Appeals of the court's decisions are taken to the United ...

Northern Mariana Islands

* Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court ** Northern Mariana Islands Superior Court

United States territorial court

* United States District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands

Panama Canal Zone

(abolished 1982)

Puerto Rico

Supreme Court of Puerto Rico The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico ( es, Tribunal Supremo de Puerto Rico) is the highest court of Puerto Rico, having judicial authority to interpret and decide questions of Puerto Rican law. The Court is analogous to one of the state supreme co ...

(Tribunal Supremo de Puerto Rico) ** Circuit Court of Appeals of Puerto Rico (Tribunal de Apelaciones) ** * Courts of First Instance of Puerto Rico (Tribunal de Primera Instancia; 13 divisions) Federal courts located in Puerto Rico: * United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico

United States Virgin Islands

United States Virgin Islands Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands is the highest court in the territory of the United States Virgin Islands. The Supreme Court assumed jurisdiction over all appeals from the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands, a trial level court, on ...

** United States Virgin Islands Superior Court (2 divisions)

United States territorial court

* District Court of the Virgin Islands ----

Extraterritorial courts of the United States

* United States Court for China (1906 to 1943), appointed judge held court in cities in China including Shanghai,

Hankow Hankou, alternately romanized as Hankow (), was one of the three towns (the other two were Wuchang and Hanyang) merged to become modern-day Wuhan city, the capital of the Hubei province, China. It stands north of the Han and Yangtze Rivers whe ...

Tientsin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...

, and Canton.Joseph Ragland, ''Outline of the Jurisdiction and Procedure of the Federal Courts'' (1917), p. 112–13, §81. * United States Court for Berlin (1979), existed on paper since 1955, but constituted in fact only once, to hear a single case.

U.S. judicial system in popular culture

Due to its involvement in the resolution of crimes and conflicts, which are an intricate part of

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been co ...

, the U.S. judicial system is often portrayed in American literature and films. Several Hollywood films such as

A Few Good Men ''A Few Good Men'' is a 1992 American legal drama film based on Aaron Sorkin's 1989 play. It was written by Sorkin, directed by Rob Reiner, and produced by Reiner, David Brown and Andrew Scheinman. It stars an ensemble cast including Tom ...

(1992) and Runaway Jury (2003) are set around its courts.

References

External links

National Center for State Courts – directory of state court websites
{{DEFAULTSORT:Courts Of The United States State court systems of the United States *List of Z United States law-related lists