Federal Courts

This course examines the work of the federal courts and their unique and complex role in our constitutional system. It touches upon both the essential procedural and substantive features of federal practice. The course’s core focus is on the tension among three competing constitutional values: (1) the separation between the judiciary and the executive and the legislative branches of government; (2) the balance between federal and state power (especially the balance between federal and state court power); and (3) the protection and redressability of individual rights. The course will address one fundamental question in both the abstract and the particular: What is the proper role of federal courts in our constitutional system of divided government?