Deciding to Decide

Much of the conversation about the Constitution's meaning centers on the work of the federal courts, but we often forget that the federal judiciary is largely the creation of Congress. The Judiciary Act of 1789 put in place the basic structure of the federal judiciary, and the Judiciary Act of 1925 gave the Supreme Court almost complete discretion over the cases it would hear through certiorari jurisdiction. Deciding whether to decide a case is one of the primary ways the Supreme Court exercises power today.