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Supreme Court Information

Supreme Court (supreme state, what cases are handled, how to file, proceedings)


To learn about the supreme court on our site click on the “court” section found on the top of the page. 

On this page scroll to the “types of court” drop-down menu and click on the “Supreme Court” section. 


The United States Supreme Court is the highest court in the nation. The Supreme Court possesses appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal court systems in the United States. The Supreme Court meets in Washington D.C. and consists of a Chief Justice and eight Associate justices. Each justice is confirmed by the United States Senate. 


Supreme Court justices are judges employed by the Federal or state governments of the U.S. These individuals are responsible for interpreting and deciphering the legal system of the United States. Every legal matter heard by a Supreme Court justice is aligned with the United States Constitution. 

The first duty of a Supreme Court Justice is to decipher what cases should be considered by the court. This evaluation process is administered to determine whether or not a proposed legal matter or case questions the United States Constitution. Because the cases in question ultimately review the U.S. Constitution, judgments issued by Supreme Court Justices will ratify a Constitutional provision or at the minimum, evaluate the specifics revolving around a particular provision of a state constitution. All Supreme Court judgments are therefore forms of appeals. All cases heard before a Supreme Court are previously heard and rendered by a lower court system in the United States. 


There are two dominant types of legal systems in the United States: the state systems and the broader Federal system. The United States Supreme Court acts as the umbrella for both systems; cases that question or involve a Constitution may be re-tried in the Supreme Court.