Judicial System课文及翻译.docVIP

Judicial System 司法系统 （课文及翻译） Overview of the Judicial System in the United States Part One Courts 第一部分 法院 There are fifty-two separate court systems in the United States. Each state, as well as the District of Columbia, has its own fully developed, independent system of courts and there is a separate federal court system. The federal courts are not superior to the state courts; they are an independent, coordinate system authorized by the United States Constitution, Art. Ⅲ,§2, to handle matters of particular federal interest. The presence of two parallel court systems often raises questions concerning the relationship of the state and federal systems, presenting important issues of federalism. The United States Supreme Court, composed of nine justices, sits as the final and controlling voice over all these systems. 美国共有五十二个独立的法院系统。哥伦比亚特区以及每一个州都有其自己充分发达和独立的法院系统，另外还有一个独立的联邦法院系统。联邦法院并不高于州法院；它们是由美国宪法第 3条第 2款授权的一个处理涉及特定联邦利益的事项的独立的并列存在的系统。存在两套平行的法院系统经常会引起关于州和联邦系统的关系问题，这是联邦主义的重要问题。由九位大法官组成的联邦最高法院位于所有这些系统之上，具有最终的和支配性的发言权。 Although a few states, such as Nebraska, have a two-tiered system, most states, as well as the federal courts, are based on a three-tiered model. That means that for any litigant there will be the opportunity to plead his case before a trial court and then, should he lose, there are two levels of appeal at which he ultimately may succeed. For example, in the federal system the trial court is the United States District Court, of which there is at least one in every state. Many larger states are divided into two, three or even four judicial districts, depending on population, geography and caseload. There are ninety-four districts in the United States and each district court has one judge, or more commonly two or more. After an adverse judgment in the district court, a litigant may appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the circuit in which the district court is located. There are eleven numbered intermediate appellate courts in the federal syst