Also known as: judicial processes
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The formal proceedings and mechanisms by which courts compel compliance with their orders and resolve disputes. It encompasses writs, subpoenas, and other means that bring parties before a tribunal or enforce judgments.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Felicity sought to prove the contents of a master booking agreement stored in foreign ministry archives. The ministry refused every formal request for production. The court allowed secondary evidence because no mechanism existed to compel the original's production.
A special prosecutor issued a subpoena to the President for tapes needed in a criminal case. The President resisted on separation-of-powers grounds. The court rejected absolute immunity and ordered production through ordinary judicial mechanisms.
A state statute imposed spousal-notification requirements on abortion providers. Lower courts applied existing precedent to strike down the provisions. The Supreme Court reaffirmed the precedent after weighing its workability within ongoing judicial proceedings.
A city ordinance limited occupancy of single-family homes to narrowly defined family members. A grandmother sued after being cited for living with her grandsons. The court examined whether the ordinance survived constitutional scrutiny through ordinary judicial review.
A jury awarded punitive damages against an automobile distributor for failing to disclose repairs. The distributor challenged the award as excessive. The court evaluated the state's interest in punishment and deterrence through the judicial process.
Same-sex couples challenged state laws limiting marriage to opposite-sex pairs. Lower courts issued injunctions after finding the laws unconstitutional. The Supreme Court resolved the conflicting rulings through the ordinary course of appellate review.
It means no court mechanism such as a subpoena or letters rogatory can compel production of the original. Secondary evidence of its contents then becomes admissible under the best-evidence rule.
Supporting sources
No. A sitting President remains subject to judicial subpoenas in criminal cases when the materials sought are not protected by executive privilege.
Supporting sources
Stare decisis operates through the judicial process by requiring courts to follow precedent unless a prior ruling has become unworkable or clearly erroneous.
Supporting sources
…generations, often through perspectives that begin in pleas or protests and then are considered in the political sphere and the judicial process. This dynamic can be seen in the Nation’s experiences with the rights of gays and lesbians. Until the mid-20th century, same-sex intimacy long had been condemned as immoral by the state…