Be able to correctly recognize the following items and to apply them in hypothetical situations:

• The different types or sources of law -- constitutional, statutory, common, administrative.
• Judicial Philosophy: judicial activism v. judicial restraint.
• Methods of judicial interpretation. Concentrate on:
  • Doctrinal Approach:
  • Competing Interests (Balancing) Approach
• Four options a court has when faced with a precedent.

• Structure of the Oklahoma court system, including how justices are selected.
• Structure of the federal court system, including how justices are selected.
• Distinctions between trial courts and appellate courts.
• The three elements required before the U.S. Supreme Court will review a state court decision;
• The meaning of a denial of certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court.

• From the USA TODAY articles:
  • What percentage of appeals filed does the U.S. Supreme Court agree to hear?
  • Why would the current Court be considered "minimalist"?
  • What factors are behind the Court's recent trend to hear fewer appeals?
  • What role do the Court's law clerks play in the selection of appeals to hear?
  • What effect does this trend have on resolving conflicts among lower courts on important issues?

• Difference between a civil and criminal action.
• Key terms, such as writ of certiorari, diversity of citizenship action, plaintiff, defendant, precedent, stare decisis, remand, plurality, per curiam, ratio decidendi, obiter dictum.
• Where to find reported court opinions, especially U.S. Supreme Court opinions.
• How to read case citations, that is, know the meaning of each element in a citation.

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