The Levels Of Federal Courts

Since the creation of the United States, the federal system has evolved. The federal court system began with Article III of the Constitution, which acknowledged that the primary judicial power in the United States rested in the Supreme Court. The Constitution also gave Congress the ability to create courts “below” the Supreme Court as necessary.

As a result, there are three levels to the current federal court system:

District courts. These 94 courts are where federal cases are tried. Judges elected to these courts serve eight-year terms. Primarily, these courts handle criminal cases including the setting of bail and issuing of search warrants.

Appellate courts. There are 12 circuit courts in the United States, which were created by Congress to reduce the Supreme Court’s caseload as well as to hear cases from the 94 district courts.

The Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the country.  

Executive branch courts. Not actually part of the judicial branch of government, there are a number of federal courts tasked with hearing a number of unique cases including taxes, veterans claims, and armed forces issues.