The American system of justice long has guaranteed citizens the right to have their legal disputes heard and resolved by an impartial judge or jury. The dispute resolution system now firmly established in the United States is an adversarial one—that is, the parties to a lawsuit take opposing sides when they appear before the neutral finder of fact. Usually vigorously represented by lawyers, the litigants—the parties to a lawsuit—present their evidence to the judge or jury for a determination of liability or guilt. Traditionally it has been thought that such an approach to the resolution of legal disputes is the most effective way for the judge or jury to arrive at the truth and to reach a fair finding.

In recent years, the use of alternative dispute resolution, including mediation and arbitration, has become increasingly popular and accepted as a means for parties to resolve their legal disputes.

The United States has one integral court system divided into two components. One set of courts exists at the federal government level and another set of courts is set up in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. While such a system may seem duplicative, the courts have different responsibilities, and access to the two court systems provides citizens with the greatest potential to have their legal disputes resolved quickly and justly.

The federal judiciary, created under the authority of Article III of the U.S. Constitution, has jurisdiction over “cases or controversies” arising from federal questions and “diversity of citizenship” jurisdiction. In general, that means that federal courts decide cases involving the U.S. government, the U.S. Constitution, acts of Congress or treaties, or controversies between the states or between the U.S. and a foreign government. They also hear disputes between citizens of different states.

Federal and state courts have concurrent—or co-existent—jurisdiction over certain matters, such as crimes involving drugs, which means litigants can choose whether to litigate their dispute in federal or state court. Some legal matters, however, can be litigated only in either federal or state court. Bankruptcies and admiralty cases, for example, are handled exclusively in the federal courts.

Viewed as a pyramid, the federal court system has as its top level the U.S. Supreme Court. On the next level are 13 U.S. Courts of Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. On the next level are 94 U.S. district courts and such specialized courts as the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, the U.S. Tax Court, the U.S. Court of Veterans Appeals and the U.S. Court of International Trade.

The Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in the country and the court of last resort for appeals from cases heard in the other federal and state courts. The Supreme Court has what is known as both original and appellate jurisdiction. Its original jurisdiction—which means no other court hears the case before it comes to the Supreme Court—is over disputes between two or more states and in cases where ambassadors or public ministers are parties to a suit. Its appellate jurisdiction—which means its authority to review cases that already have been decided by a lower court—permits the Court to hear appeals from federal circuit courts and from state courts of last resort.

Under authority granted it by Congress, the Supreme Court determines its own caseload. The Court decides about 100 or fewer of some 5,000 or more cases that it is asked to review each year. It usually accepts only those cases that involve important interpretations of the Constitution, acts of legislative bodies and treaties. Most of its decisions in those cases are announced in published opinions.

The Court usually disposes of the other cases that it has been asked to consider by issuing a short decision rejecting the matter either because the subject matter is not proper or the case is not sufficiently important to justify review by the Court. In these cases, the decision of the last court that considered the matter is the final judgment.

When the Supreme Court decides to hear a case, the parties are required to file written briefs and the Court generally hears oral argument. Justices sit en banc for oral arguments, which means they all sit together in open court.

Surprisingly, there are no constitutional or statutory qualifications for judges nominated to serve on any federal court—from the U.S. Supreme Court to federal district courts. Judges don’t have to pass any examination or meet any age requirement, nor are they required to have been born in the U.S. or be legal residents. They don’t even have to have a law degree.

Those who are nominated and confirmed to the federal bench, however, typically are well-regarded private or government attorneys, state court judges, magistrate judges or bankruptcy judges, or law professors.

Each court in the federal system has a chief judge who, in addition to hearing cases, assumes administrative duties relating to the operation of the court. The judge who has served on the court the longest and who is under 65 years of age is designated chief judge. Chief district and courts of appeals judges may serve for a maximum of seven years. They may not serve as chief judge beyond the age of 70.

Each circuit has a judicial council, consisting of the chief judge and an equal number of court of appeals and district judges. One of the council’s main jobs is caseload management. They also act on complaints about a judge’s misconduct or disability.

The Judicial Conference of the United States is the chief policymaking body for the federal courts. The Chief Justice of the United States is the presiding officer of the Judicial Conference. Twenty-six other judges serve on the Judicial Conference—the chief judge of each of the federal circuits, one district judge from each of the 12 regional circuits, and the chief judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade. The conference meets semiannually for two-day sessions. Besides establishing policy, the Judicial Conference also identifies legislative requirements, recommends revisions to the federal rules of practice and procedure, and has other administrative responsibilities.

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts manages administration of the federal judicial system. Charged with implementing the policies of the Judicial Conference, it also works in program management and policy development. It is this office that handles public affairs for the federal judiciary.

The vast majority of legal disputes in the U.S. are handled at the state court level. State courts have the power to decide nearly every type of case, subject only to the limits of the U.S. Constitution, their own state constitutions and statutes. Most of state court precedent comes from common law, a legal system that originated in England and depends upon the articulation and acceptance of legal principles in judicial decisions over a long period of time.

State and local courts are the judicial forums with which citizens are most likely to have contact. Such courts are found in nearly every city and many towns in the country. They handle criminal matters, legal business concerning probate of estates, juvenile, traffic and family matters, real estate and business contracts, and personal injury claims. In many states, special courts are set up to deal exclusively with such subjects as probate, juvenile, and domestic relations. And some “small claims” or “pro se” courts specifically are set up to hear claims under a certain dollar amount.

Most states require that judges, except for judges of the peace, be lawyers admitted to practice for a certain number of years, and have residency and state citizenship requirements.