Guest Blogger: Braedon W.

This week we have been exploring the workings of the United States Judicial System. We have seen how cases of varying importance make their way through both the State and Federal level courts, by walking through a small crime that can be handled with a quick trial to a larger one that may have to go through several courts to reach a decision. I found it interesting how the Supreme Court was able to do its job properly when they have over 10,000 petitions that are on the docket per term. This made me wonder how cases are chosen to be given the attention of the most prestigious court in our nation, as well as what happens to the cases that are denied.
After doing a little research I found that all of the eligible cases are presented in the form of a petition for writs of certiorari. Once the petition has been submitted it is voted on by the Justices in a conference session. The Justices will decide on hearing a case if it has compelling reasons such as the interpretation of a federal law or the Constitution as well as other reasons. The Justices will usually grant plenary review and oral arguments by an attorney to around 100 cases per term. In addition to hearing these cases the Justices will give formal written opinions to 80-90 cases per term.
This means that several thousand cases are denied by the Supreme Court each year. So what ends up happening to them? When the Supreme Court denies a case, which happens in most circumstances, the ruling in the lower court is upheld as the final ruling.
I know when I hear about a court case today the first thing that I think of is how much time it will take for a decision to be made. It could be argued that our judicial system isn’t efficient, but I for one would rather have a fair and just trail instead of a controversial trial such as the Amanda Knox trial in Italy.