Supreme courts or high courts that exist in all 50

Supreme Courts or High Courts that exist in
all 50 states and typically have 5-9 justices
who sit en banc (all together) and hear
appeals from state courts of general
jurisdiction or state intermediate appellate
courts if the state has one; they have final
interpretation on state law, and although
technically, someone could appeal from this
level to the U.S. Supreme Court, it rarely
happens because few cases involve the
Constitution or federal law.
U.S. Circuit of Appeals : consist of 167 judges
among 13 courts, dispersed regionally, twelve
to look for judicial error in lower courts, and
one that handles patents and when the U.S.
government is a defendant; they have
mandatory jurisdiction (must hear appeals)
from lower courts, and appeals are either
frivolous, ritualistic, or nonconsensual, with
nonconsensual appeals sometimes settled as
precedent at this level.
State Intermediate Appellate Courts : exist in
only 39 states to alleviate the burden on state
courts of last resort; they have no trial
jurisdiction and only hear appeals from state
courts of general jurisdiction by reviewing
trial transcripts and hearing occasional oral
arguments; they have mandatory jurisdiction
and must hear any legally appealed case;
appellate judges usually sit in a panel of three
to decide cases.
U.S. District Courts : consist of 650 judges
among 95 courts dispersed in every state and
territory; they have original jurisdiction
(conduct trials) over criminal violations of
federal law, and are assisted by 369 U.S.
Magistrates who handle pre-trial matters and
may try minor offenders; some courts at this
level have specific responsibilities; many have
cases backlogged.
State Trial Courts of General Jurisdiction :
variously called superior, district, or circuit
courts, they consist of about 3,000 state-
funded courts which keep transcripts and
hold felony trials; when states create
specialized courts, such as drug courts,
mental health courts, or community
mediation centers, they can exist at this level
or at a lower level.
State Trial Courts of Limited Jurisdiction :
variously called inferior, lower, city,
municipal, country, or magistrate courts,
they consist of about 13,000 courts most of
which are funded by city or county
governments (which sometimes mistakenly
call them circuit or district courts), hearing
traffic cases, ordinance violations, and
criminal misdemeanors; no jury trials are
held, and no transcripts are kept, requiring a
trial de novo if an appeal is made.
STATE COURTS: There are two basic facts about state court systems: (1) no two states
are completely alike; and (2) you can't tell what a court does by its name. All states have
trial courts devoted to criminal cases, but in places like Ohio and Pennsylvania that have a
unified court system, the criminal courts are known as courts of common pleas; in

California , criminal courts are called superior courts; in New York as supreme courts; and
in Michigan as recorder's courts. So, even narrowing our focus down to criminal courts is