The Federal Courts

Go to the following website: www.oyez.org (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Click on the “News” icon at the top right. Read the “Weekly Roundup.” What was going on with the Court this week? (You can also choose an earlier week if you want to be different.) Then, click on the “Cases” icon and choose a case from the 2014 Term or earlier. What were the “facts of the case”? What was the “legal question/issue”? What did the majority opinion and separate opinions argue? What is the significance of the case? Listen to the oral argument for the case. What role does oral argument play in the way the Court functions? Write up your answers as an essay. This essay will reflect that you read about the cases before the court (news) and that you understand the basic questions of a legal “syllabus” (or sometimes called a “summary” on Oyez). You do not have to have a substantive thesis, you can just describe what you read (though your thoughts on your reading, and on the role of oral argument, will be of interest). 800 word