participate in oral arguments before the appeal court justices (Coffin, 130-1). To ensure that the cases are examined from several perspectives and receive a thorough analysis, each Court of Appeal case is decided by three appellate court justices. All nine justices decide Supreme Court cases. In both cases, a majority of justices must agree on a decision. They are bound by the federal and state Constitutions, statutes and other rules and regulations dictated by the state legislature, voter initiatives and other authorities. Judges must interpret and enforce the law without being swayed by public opinion. The Code of Judicial Ethics requires all judges to be faithful to the law regardless of partisan interests, societal pressure or fear of criticism. Judges are not allowed to hear cases in which they are personally involved, a personal bias against a party in the case, or cases in which they were involved in as a lawyer (uscourts.gov, 12). Generally, the decision must be issued within 90 day after it has been submitted for decision. The federal and state court systems are completely separate and distinct from one another. However, some decisions of state appellate and supreme courts are subject to review by the federal courts. The U.S. Supreme Court has the power to review any case arising in state court if and it usually involves a federal issue. In order for a case to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, a writ of certiorari must be filed. This document asks the court to review the case. Although they hear only a very small percentage of the cases that are filed with them, this is still a necessary step in the process (uscourts.gov, 6). In a limited number of other cases, a single federal trial judge may reject a decision of a state appellate or Supreme Court or an initiative approved by state voters. There are 94 federal district (trial) courts; at least one for each state plus one District of Columbia and another for Pue...
