Jurisdiction
From Ballotpedia
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In law, jurisdiction (from Latin ius, iuris meaning "law" and dicere meaning "to speak") is the power of a court to adjudicate cases and issue orders. Jurisdiction can also be referred to as the territory within which a court or government agency may properly exercise its power.[1]
Types of jurisdiction
There are many different categories of jurisdiction. The most commonly discussed forms are:[1]
- In rem jurisdiction: Jurisdiction over a thing (i.e., during divorce proceedings, the court exercises in rem jurisdiction over the marriage)
- In personal jurisdiction: The court's jurisdiction over a person
- Subject-matter jurisdiction: Jurisdiction over the type of claim brought by the plaintiff (i.e., a small claims court only has subject matter jurisdiction of claims up to a certain dollar amount)
- Federal or state jurisdiction: The federal courts' jurisdiction over federal questions and suits between diverse parties
- Original jurisdiction: The court's authority to hear the claim in the first instance, rather than on appeal
- Pendent jurisdiction: The authority of a federal district court to hear a state claim when it shares a common factual basis with the federal claim
On Ballotpedia, courts are classified in different ways based on jurisdiction:
- Limited jurisdiction: Trial courts that have authority over only one type of case, such as probate courts or family courts
- General jurisdiction: Trial courts that that may hear any type of case that arises in its geographic area
- Intermediate appellate courts: Courts that serve as an intermediate step between the trial courts and the courts of last resort in a state
- Court of last resort: The highest judicial body within a jurisdiction's court system (a court with the highest appellate authority, meaning that its rulings are not subject to further review by another court)
