How long does the Supreme Court have to decide on a petition for certiorari?
There is probably an internal court rule that defines an expiration date. But generally, as a matter of custom, the court accepts or denies cert during the same term.
About how many petitions are filed with the Supreme Court each year? Need some help with this question please!?
There are about 10,000 petitions for certiorari to the Supreme Court each year. About 100 of them are heard.
How do most cases reach supreme court?
There are three separate routes that cases follow to reach the Supreme Court. The first, and least common, is a case under the Court's "original jurisdiction". "Original jurisdiction" means that the Supreme Court hears the case directly, without the case going through an intermediate stage. The original jurisdiction is set forth in the United States Code. The Supreme Court has original and exclusive jurisdiction to hear disputes between different states -- meaning that no other federal court can hear such a dispute. The most common way for a case to reach the Supreme Court is on appeal from a circuit court. A party seeking to appeal a decision of a circuit court can file a petition to the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari. "Certiorari" is a Latin word meaning "to inform", in the sense that the petition informs the Court of the request for review. Unlike all other federal courts, the Supreme Court has discretion to decide which cases it will hear. The Supreme Court gets thousands of petitions for certiorari, but only issues a writ in a fraction of cases. The Court will only issue a writ if four of the nine Justices vote to do so. Justices usually take the importance of a given case and the need to issue a final decision before deciding to grant certiorari. If four Justices do not agree to grant certiorari, the petition is denied. If a case is "denied cert", the decision of the lower court is final. The third way in which a case can reach the Supreme Court is through an appeal from a state supreme court. Each state has its own supreme court that is the final authority on state law. (However, each state does not always call its highest court the "Supreme Court"; in New York, for example, the highest court is the Court of Appeals.) The Supreme Court will generally not challenge a state court's ruling on an issue of state law. However, the Court will grant certiorari in cases where the state court's ruling deals with Constitutional issues.
How do you petition the court without an attorney?
You petition a court as an individual the same way an attorney petitions the court. Unless you are part of a corporation, partnership or other business entity there is no requirement that an individual person have an attorney.My answer holds true for the US and its various states. We call it proceeding pro se, Latin for for yourself.The court may give you some leeway on details but you will be held to the same standards as an attorney.If this is the initial pleading, you must have it in proper form, have the correct number of copies to file with the court along with the fee. There is almost always a fee to start a case.You are responsible for properly serving opposing party. Suits , claims and petitions are often dismissed for failure to properly or timely serve the opponent. The Civil Practice Code and local court rules will tell you how to do that.If the case has already been filed, to file a petition or motion you must have the proper case caption and court number.You title the petition saying what the document is, e.g., Petition to Intervene, Petition to Enforce Foreign Judgement, etc.You draft the basis or facts and then specifically say what you want the court to do.You must give separate notice to all parties that you are filing the petition and state when you will present it to the court.You must show up in court at the time and date stated. The opponents may ask for time to respond or you may be required to file a brief in support of your petition with case law and other supporting documentation.You may or may not be allowed to orally argue. That varies by judge.Once the judge has ruled, you must be able to draft the order for the court to sign and know if there is specific language which is required for teh circumstance.All of these points vary by jurisdiction and occasionally from judge to judge within the same jurisdiction. If you make a mistake on any point you can lose the whole thing either on procedural or substantive grounds.