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Another facet of the law is what is referred to as administrative law. At both the state and federal level, there are administrative agencies. Most of those agencies are part of the executive branch of government. As discussed in the material dealing with constitutional law, our government is divided into three branches—the executive branch, the judicial branch, and the legislative branch.

The executive branch is headed by the president at the federal level and by the governor at the state level. The judicial branch at the federal level is headed by the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. At the state level, the Judicial branch is headed by the chief justice of the highest court of that state, which in most instances is referred to as the Supreme Court (although in some states, it may be referred to as the Court of Appeals).

Within the legislative branch, there typically is no one person who is the head of that branch. At the federal level, the legislature is bi-cameral, meaning that it consists of two bodies. Those two bodies are the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Speaker of the House is the leader of that legislative body. The President Pro Tempore is the leader of the Senate. At the state level, there may be the same general type of organization within the legislative branch.

You may be asking yourself, What do the above comments have to do with administrative rules or regulations? Although most administrative rules and regulations are set forth by administrative agencies within the executive branch, there may be administrative agencies within the judicial branch or the legislative branch that could set forth rules and regulations of their own.

The administrative agencies that most of us are probably familiar with are federal agencies like the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Communications Commission. Some of these federal agencies are cabinet-level agencies, meaning that the heads of those agencies are members of the President’s cabinet.

Others may be considered to be independent agencies. For instance, the Federal Election Commission is an independent agency that has the specific responsibility of overseeing compliance with the federal election laws by presidential candidates and other candidates at the national level. Another independent agency is the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is charged with the responsibility of overseeing the use of nuclear power in the nonmilitary arena.

These agencies generally have the authority to issue regulations. These regulations in some instances may be referred to as rules. Although there is a technical distinction between a rule and a regulation, for purposes of this discussion they are treated as being one and the same. These administrative agencies are created by acts of Congress and are given a specific purpose as set forth in the U.S. Code. The agencies are also given the authority to write and publish rules and regulations that will govern its conduct.

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The importance of case law from various courts, to some extent, has to be evaluated based upon the status of the court that rendered the decision. This refers to the precedent value the case holds over other courts.

For instance, a decision rendered by a trial judge in the Hanover County Superior Court in North Carolina may be of great interest nationwide, but it is not binding on anyone other than the parties in that particular case. If that case, however, is appealed to the North Carolina Court of Appeals and a written decision is rendered, then that case law becomes binding to every person in North Carolina as the law of the state. If that case is then appealed to the North Carolina Supreme Court, then the decision rendered by the North Carolina Supreme Court becomes the law of North Carolina and is binding upon all litigants in the North Carolina State Court System.

If that case involved a constitutional or federal issue, it may be further appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. A decision by the Supreme Court is binding upon the entire nation.

In the federal system, a decision rendered by a United States District Court judge is typically only binding upon the litigants in that case. However, if that case is appealed from the United States District Court to the United States Court of Appeals for that circuit, then the decision rendered by that United States Court of Appeals becomes binding upon all of the persons within that federal circuit. For instance, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals includes the states of Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. Any decision rendered by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit is binding upon all persons within that five state area.

It is quite possible that the United States Circuit Court for the Eleventh Circuit could decide a case with similar issues and come up with an opposite conclusion. Typically, when a conflict exists between circuits, the issue will be presented to the U.S. Supreme Court to decide how to resolve the conflict between the circuits.
 

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Written decisions rendered within the state court system are found in regional reporters. The publishing house that is responsible for publishing state court decisions has essentially divided the United States into regions. For instance, Illinois is contained within the North Eastern Region. As such, a decision by the Illinois Supreme Court that is reported in written form could be found both in the state reporter, known as the Illinois Official Supreme Reporter, and also in the regional reporter, known as the North Eastern Reporter. The decision of Jones v. Smith from the Supreme Court of Illinois discussed earlier would be reported under the same name with the following citation: 208 Ill. 2d 450, 804 N.E.2d 480 (2004). The decision then would be found in volume 208 of the Illinois Official Supreme Reporter at page 450 and would also be found in the regional reporter known as the North Eastern Reporter at volume 804, page 480. Again, the year refers to the year when the decision was rendered.

Written decisions from trial courts at the state court level frequently are not published by any publishing house. To the extent they are available at all, they may only be available within that local court house. Some states have adopted trial court reporting systems wherein certain written decisions that are presented to them may be published. In the state of Virginia there is a publication known as Circuit Court Opinions, which consists of written decisions made by circuit court judges in the state of Virginia. Those decisions, however, are only published if either the judge or one of the attorneys forwards that written decision to the publishing firm.

Courts either at the state or federal level are charged principally with resolving disputes that are presented to them and in that context, render interpretations of state or federal statutes or state or federal constitutional provisions. Any decision rendered by a trial court judge is subject to being reviewed and potentially overturned by the appellate court that has appellate jurisdiction over that trial court. For instance, in the federal system, any decision rendered by a United States District Court is subject to appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for that circuit. The United States District Court judge may have rendered a written decision.

That decision then can be reviewed by the judges in the United States Circuit Court for that circuit, and those judges on the circuit court can either agree or disagree with the decision from the United States District Court. The decision rendered by the United States Court of Appeals likewise may be appealed to the United States Supreme Court. If the U.S. Supreme Court exercises its discretion and decides to hear the case, then the U.S. Supreme Court can either uphold or reverse that decision.

At the state court level the same procedure applies. Any decision rendered by a trial court can be appealed to the appellate court that has jurisdiction. The appellate court can then either uphold or reverse the trial court decision. The high court within that state generally has the last word on those cases that are initially tried within that state. However, if the case involves an issue of federal or constitutional law, then the U.S. Supreme Court can decide to hear a case from the state court system.
 

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Case law for the most part comes from appellate courts. The appellate courts may be intermediate courts or they may be the high court of that state or court system. For instance, there is an abundance of case law rendered by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Likewise, there is a wealth of decisions rendered by the United States Supreme Court.

The decisions of the appellate courts are contained within various bound volumes published by different law publishing companies. A written decision rendered by a United States District Court judge may be published in legal books known as the Federal Supplement (abbreviated F. Supp.).

Example: A decision rendered by a United States District Court judge is generally referred to by the name of the parties, e.g., Jones v. Smith, 317 F. Supp. 2d 820 (N.D.IL. 2004). That case would then be found in volume 317 of the Federal Supplement Second beginning on page 820. The parenthetical means that it is a decision from a United States District judge in the Northern District of Illinois, that was rendered in 2004.

NOTE: The volumes are put into series and when they reach a certain number, generally 999, the numbering begins again at one. That is why you will find a 2d or 3d in the citation.

Decisions rendered by a United States Circuit Court of Appeals are found in law books known as the Federal Reporter. For instance, a decision rendered by the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit could be reported at 356 F.3d 121 (9th Circ. 2004). That citation means that the decision was rendered by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 2004 and can be found in Volume 356 of the Federal Reporter Third Series at page 121.

Decisions from the United States Supreme Court may be reported in three different reporting systems, all of which are published by different publishing houses. For instance, a decision from the United States Supreme Court would frequently be referred to as Jones v. Smith 535 U.S. 85, 125 S. Ct. 25, 159 L. Ed. 2d 125 (2004). That decision would be found in any one of those three volumes with the first volume being referred to as the United States Reporter, Case Law 23 Volume 535, page 85. That same decision can also be found in the Supreme Court Reporter, in Volume 125, page 25 and would also be found in the Lawyer’s Edition Second Series in volume 159, page 125. The year refers to the year when the decision was rendered.
 

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The case law referred to earlier in this chapter consists of the written decisions of the various courts. Typically, trial courts do not generate case law. Even though a trial court judge may issue a written opinion (also called a decision) in a given case, that decision has very limited application. Decisions rendered by trial judges are only binding in regard to that specific case. They do not necessarily have any controlling effect upon any other trial judge within that trial court and do not have any controlling effect on any trial judge in any other trial court. Trial courts are the lowest tribunal and as such any written decisions rendered by trial court judges are of limited application.

Many cases decided by trial courts are decided by juries. Juries do not render written decisions explaining their analysis of the case, but rather simply render a verdict. That verdict in a civil case would be either in favor of the plaintiff or in favor of the defendant. If the verdict is in favor of the plaintiff and there is an amount of money being sought by the plaintiff, then the jury would fix the amount of the monetary award (i.e., value the damages). If there is no jury deciding the case, then the judge may enter a verdict or a judgment order fixing the amount of damages or granting one party the form of relief that is sought.
 

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The state court systems vary dramatically from state to state. Some states have a single trial court. In these states, the trial court is generally referred to as a court of general jurisdiction, wherein all civil and criminal cases are initiated.

Other states have what is referred to as a two-tier trial court system. In the state of Virginia, the lowest trial court is the General District Court. That court hears all criminal misdemeanor cases and can also hear all civil cases wherein the amount claimed is less than $15,000. (A misdemeanor is a crime wherein the potential penalty is no more than one year in jail.) There are no juries in the General District Court. Any case that is heard in the General District Court may then be appealed to the Circuit Court, where the party bringing the appeal is entitled to a new trial (referred to as a trial de novo). In the Circuit Court either party can request a jury trial. The Circuit Court is a court of general jurisdiction, meaning that virtually any type of case can be brought within the circuit court.

Many states also have what is referred to as an intermediate court of appeals. That intermediate court of appeals is essentially the equivalent of the United States Circuit Court of Appeals, except that the state intermediate court of appeals only hears appeals from the state trial courts. These intermediate courts of appeals generally will hear any case that is appealed to them. However, in some states the intermediate courts of appeals are courts of limited jurisdiction and may have authority to only hear certain types of cases.

The highest court in most states is referred to as the Supreme Court, but some states may refer to their highest court by a different name. That high court may be a court of discretionary appeal, meaning that they exercise discretion as to which cases they will hear, much like the U.S. Supreme Court. These courts of appeal, whether they be intermediate or supreme, do not actually try cases, but simply review briefs and records submitted to them by the attorneys, then hear oral arguments and make a decision.
 

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It is important to make a clear distinction in your mind between criminal cases and civil cases. A criminal case is, in essence, a lawsuit brought by the government acting through a prosecutor against an individual who is accused of violating a criminal statute. For instance, if you deface a federal building, you may be charged with a federal crime in a federal courthouse. Or if you punch your next door neighbor in the nose on private property, you most likely would be charged with a violation of a state criminal statute. It would be tried in state court before a state court judge, and you would have the right to have a jury present, with that jury being drawn from the cities, counties, or towns where that court had jurisdiction.

A civil case, on the other hand, does not involve any criminal penalty. A civil case involves a claim for monetary relief or a claim for equitable relief. For instance, if you are injured in an automobile accident, you may have a right to sue that other party for monetary damages seeking compensation for your medical expenses, loss of income, and pain and suffering. In a claim seeking equitable relief, you are asking the court to order the other party to either do or not do something. For example, you may sue your next door neighbors to enjoin, or prevent, them from extending their home onto your private property. In that case, you are not asking for money damages but for an order to enjoin your neighbors from constructing their home on your private property. There are a wide variety of civil cases that may be instituted.

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The federal court system is somewhat more integrated than the state courts because the federal courts do not necessarily recognize state boundaries in terms of their authority. The federal courts consist of the Supreme Court, circuit, and district courts.

The U.S. Supreme Court is the most important federal court. It sits in Washington, D.C., and is composed of nine judges, or justices, who are nominated by the president and then approved by the Senate. The sitting justices are all attorneys, and in fact, most of them are former judges from lower courts who have been elevated to the U.S. Supreme Court. However, there is no requirement that a U.S. Supreme Court justice be an attorney.

The United States Supreme Court is a court of discretionary appeal. That means it exercises its discretion in deciding which cases it will hear. As a court of appeal, it does not actually try cases, but rather, it simply reviews legal briefs as submitted by attorneys or litigants. It hears oral arguments that are limited to an hour or two and thereafter renders a written decision. The U.S. Supreme Court does not actually hear from witnesses, hear evidence, or resolve factual disputes as might be done by a jury. Rather, it simply reviews the record presented from the trial that occurred in the lower court, and then determines whether or not there was a procedural, evidentiary, or constitutional error committed at the trial court level.

In order to have a case presented to the U.S. Supreme Court, the party who is requesting the hearing must first file a petition. If the petition is denied, the case will not be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. If the petition is granted, the nine justices will hear the appeal and render a decision. Thousands of cases are appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court every year, but only a very small percentage of them are actually heard.

Example: In the 2002 term, 8,255 cases were appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the U.S. Supreme Court only issued written decisions in seventy-nine cases.

The federal court system is essentially shaped like a pyramid. At the top of the pyramid is the U.S. Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court is, as its name suggests, supreme and is final in the sense that it is the court of last resort. There is no higher court. Below the U.S. Supreme Court are eleven U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals. The United States is divided into eleven numbered federal circuits, plus two additional circuits designated the D.C. Circuit and the Federal Circuit. Within each of those circuits is a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. These courts hear appeals from either the trial court below or from certain federal agencies that have a right of direct appeal to the U.S. Circuit Courts.

These U.S. Circuit Courts are somewhat similar to the U.S. Supreme Court in that they are simply courts of appeal. The U.S. Circuit Courts do not actually try cases—they do not hear evidence, the litigants do not testify in front of them, and they do not typically resolve factual questions as would be done by a jury. The U.S. Courts of Appeals simply review briefs submitted to them by attorneys, then hear oral argument from the attorneys, and thereafter render a written decision or issue an order either affirming, modifying, or overruling the decision from the trial court.

The diagram is designed to show in a general framework the layout of the court system on both the federal level and the state level.

COURT SYSTEM

COURT                      FEDERAL SYSTEM                                    STATE SYSTEM

Highest Court          U.S. Supreme Court                           Name may vary from state to state,
                                                                                             but frequently called Supreme Court.

Intermediate
Court of Appeals     U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals            Name may vary from state to state.

Trial Court               U.S. District Court                            Name may vary from state to state. 
                                                                                             Some states have a single-tiered trial 
                                                                                             court. Other states have a two-tiered 
                                                                                             trial court system, which means that 
                                                                                             there are two different levels—one 
                                                                                             being a higher trial court for more 
                                                                                             serious matters and the other being a 
                                                                                             lower trial court for less serious 
                                                                                             matters.
 
Below the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals are the U.S. District Courts, which are the trial courts within the federal system. The United States is divided into ninety-four federal districts. For instance, in the state of Virginia there are two federal districts: the Eastern District of Virginia and the Western District of Virginia. In the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, there are several different divisions that are part of that federal district. A division simply means that there is a courthouse located in that locality to serve the counties or cities within proximity of that courthouse.

The United States District Courts are presided over by United States District judges, who are nominated by the President to their position and then approved by the Senate. There may also be magistrates within the United States District Court, who are judicial officers with the authority to hear certain types of cases assigned to them by the United States District judge.

The United States District Court as a trial court is a court of limited jurisdiction, meaning that it has only limited authority to hear certain types of cases. In the criminal area, the United States District Courts can only hear cases that involve any federal crime (i.e., a violation of federal law). For instance, referring back to the Rodney King case, the police officers in that case were charged with a violation of federal civil rights law. They were tried in a United States District Court before a United States District Court judge with a jury that was composed of citizens within that United States district.

United States District Courts, as courts of limited jurisdiction, can only hear cases that involve either a question of federal law (federal question) or that involve disputes between citizens of different states. This latter requirement, dealing with citizens of different states, is known as diversity jurisdiction in the federal courts. For example, a citizen of the state of Connecticut may sue a citizen of the state of Mississippi in the United States District Court of Mississippi relating to an automobile accident that occurred in Ohio.

Federal law not only requires that there be diversity of citizenship, but also that the amount sued for (the amount in controversy) be at least $75,000. As such, if you were involved in an automobile accident in the state of Texas while you were a citizen of Texas and the other party likewise was a citizen of Texas, you could not bring that suit in federal court because there is no diversity of citizenship. If, on the other hand, the other party to the automobile accident was driving a United States postal truck, the case would be brought in the United States District Court, since it is a claim against the U.S. Government based on a federal statute (e.g., the Federal Tort Claims Act).

A criminal case is, in essence, a lawsuit brought by the government acting through a prosecutor against an individual who is accused of violating a criminal statute.

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Case law is the law as stated in specific cases decided by courts. Case law is in written form, and generally contains a brief synopsis of the facts of the case, an analysis of the legal principles that apply, and a statement of the court’s decision (what is generally known as the holding of the case). The holding is the crux of the decision rendered by that court. Insofar as that court has jurisdiction or authority to interpret the law, the holding then becomes law. Any language in the case decision other than the holding is surplus language, or what may be referred to as obiter dictum (or simply dicta). The dicta within a court decision is not binding law, but rather is simply utilized by that court to explain its rationale.

To fully understand the scope of case law and what effect it has upon our daily lives, it is necessary to understand the structure of the court system. In the United States there are two entirely separate and distinct court systems—the federal court system and the state court system. Each state has its own court system that is entirely separate and entirely distinct from the federal system, and from the court systems of the other forty-nine states in the Union.
 

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The impact of local codes is most often seen in regard to housing, traffic, and zoning issues. For instance, if you want to build a home of a particular type on a specific piece of property, the construction may have to meet certain zoning requirements in terms of height, size, and proximity to the boundary line. In areas where zoning regulations apply, you probably would not be able to build a ten-story home in a residential community with a building height limit of twenty-five feet. Likewise, traffic laws frequently are set forth in local codes, although those local traffic regulations have to be consistent with any state laws passed on those same issues. Again, the issue of preemption applies. For instance, an absurd situation would exist if every locality were allowed to decide whether a green light meant go or stop.
 

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The federal statutory laws are found in the United States Code. The copy of the Code that most lawyers are familiar with is the United States Code Annotated. The term annotated means there are notations following the code section from court cases that have interpreted or applied that particular statutory code section. The annotations are frequently helpful in interpreting what the true meaning is of that statutory code section.

Most state codes are annotated and contain court decisions from both state and federal courts interpreting the various code sections. Local codes tend not to be annotated simply because the local governments that publish the local codes do not have the financial resources to annotate their local codes. Also, there tends not to be a great volume of case law interpreting local codes.

There is a shorthand abbreviation that is used for references to the United States Code. For instance, 28 USC §1392 is a reference to Title 28 of the United States Code Section 1392. The United States Code contains many volumes, like a set of encyclopedias. All of the titles are numbered sequentially on the binding of each volume. 28 USC §1392 would be found in one of the volumes marked Title 28. Within those volumes, §1392 would be found sequentially.

The state codes may have their own distinct numbering system. For instance, in regard to the Virginia Code, references to a code section would be to a specific numbered section such as Virginia Code Section 8.01-234. That is a reference to Title 8.01. Within that title, you would look for the code section designated as 234. Local codes may be designated in a similar fashion.

The volume of legislation that has been passed by the United States Congress is, in many respects, mind-boggling. There is federal legislation on virtually every issue. It is important to keep in mind, however, that the federal government, even though it seems to be involved in every aspect of our lives, is still a government of limited jurisdiction. You may recall from the section dealing with constitutional law that our founding fathers established the federal government as a government of limited authority with the understanding that whatever authority was not bestowed upon the federal government remained with the state governments. You would never guess that by looking at the volume of federal legislation.

Whatever authority was not bestowed upon the federal government remains with the state governments.

The most significant limitation upon the authority of the federal government is to enact legislation in the criminal sphere. For instance, the federal government has no authority to pass a statute that prohibits homicide in your private home on private property. The federal government does have the authority, however, to pass a law prohibiting homicide on federal land, in a federal building, or against a federal officer. As such, most criminal prosecutions are initiated in the state
courts under state law, because the authority of the federal government to enact criminal law truly is limited.

Example: The dichotomy between federal and state law was found in the Rodney King case in Los Angeles, in which police officers were accused of beating a criminal suspect. Those police officers were first tried under state criminal laws and were acquitted (i.e., found not guilty).

The federal government then stepped in and decided that those same police officers would be prosecuted under federal civil rights laws. The federal government had no authority to prosecute them for the crime of assault, since the crime in question did not occur on federal territory, did not involve a federal official, and did not involve a distinct federal interest as far as the assault only was concerned.

The federal government, however, has passed laws that make it a crime for certain persons acting in official governmental capacity to violate the civil rights of people. Those police officers were then prosecuted in the federal court under that federal law. It is in the criminal field that you see the authority of the federal government most clearly restricted in terms of its ability to enact legislation prohibiting certain types of crimes.

At first blush, it would seem that this is a violation of the double jeopardy clause contained within the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution. It has been held, however, by the courts that it is not a double jeopardy violation since there are two separate sovereigns involved—the federal government and the state government. In addition, there were two separate offenses involved—one was the offense of assault under the state code and the other was a civil rights violation under the federal code.

It is in the criminal field that you see the authority of the federal government most clearly restricted.

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A general principle that applies to this statutory scheme is a principle known as preemption. When there is a conflict on a specific issue between federal statutory law and state statutory law, federal law will generally preempt, or supersede, the state law. That same principle applies in regard to a conflict between state law and local law. Local government cannot enact legislation that is contrary to the state statutory law. The logic behind this concept is that there has to be one entity that is supreme. For instance, it would be an absurd situation if the federal government passed an income tax law and then certain states decided that their citizens would not have to comply with that law. The American Civil War was fought in part over the issue of states’ rights—whether the federal government was going to be supreme or whether the states were going to be supreme on the issue of slavery.
 

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Statutory law falls into three categories—federal statutory law, state statutory law, and local statutory law. The federal statutory law is found in the United States Code. The state statutory law is found in the state code enacted by the legislative body that governs that state. Local statutory law is found in local codes and ordinances. Those local codes may be county codes, city codes, or town codes that are enacted by the local governing body.
 

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Aside from the U.S. Constitution, each state within the Union has a state constitution. Those state constitutions may vary dramatically from one state to another. The key point to remember in regard to the state constitution is that it may bestow additional rights upon the citizens of that state, but it cannot restrict the rights guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution.
 

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All of the amendments are important. A brief description of the other amendments to the U.S. Constitution follows.

* The Eleventh Amendment states that federal courts do not have the authority to hear lawsuits brought by a citizen or non-citizen of one state against another state in the Union. (This is not to be confused with diversity jurisdiction.)

* The Twelfth Amendment deals with the functioning of the electoral college.

* The Thirteenth Amendment abolishes slavery.

* The Fifteenth Amendment extends the right to vote to all citizens.

* The Sixteenth Amendment allows for income tax to be imposed.

* The Seventeenth Amendment deals with the number of senators for each state and how vacancies in a senate seat are filled.

* The Eighteenth Amendment enacts prohibition.

* The Nineteenth Amendment grants women the right to vote.

* The Twentieth Amendment deals with presidential succession and the convening of Congress.

* The Twenty-first Amendment repeals prohibition.

* The Twenty-second Amendment imposes limits on how long a person can serve as President.

* The Twenty-third Amendment allows the District of Columbia electors to vote for President and Vice President.

* The Twenty-fourth Amendment establishes the right of citizens to vote without being restricted by paying a poll tax. This is an Amendment principally designed to prohibit states from precluding certain citizens from voting by imposing financial restraints on them.

* The Twenty-fifth Amendment deals with presidential succession.

* The Twenty-sixth Amendment gives 18-year-olds the right to vote.

* The Twenty-seventh Amendment prohibits congressional pay raises from taking effect until the next election of representatives.
 

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