In light of the three different appellate courts decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court elected to hear the case against President Obama's healthcare legislation. While the most recent decision found in favor of the constitutionality of the law, "the Supreme Court agreed to hear appeals from just one decision, from the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, in Atlanta, the only one so far striking down the mandate" (Liptak 2011). Although the U.S. Supreme Court is the final court of appeal, the fact that it has only recently stepped in to rule upon the healthcare legislation shows the breadth of authority that lies in the hands of federal appellate courts. The U.S. Supreme Court, depending on its composition, has specifically selected certain kinds and types of federal court decisions to review to shape the law of the land -- during the New Deal, its focus was upon economic legislation, reflecting the conservative nature of the Court, while today's court has focused areas of the law which remain particularly murky, such as regulation of the Internet ("Judicial review," The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States, 2011).

Still, federal appeals courts handle matters as diverse as interstate commerce and civil rights laws, just like the Supreme Court. One First Amendment case recently settled by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled "unanimously that the lawsuit against an advanced placement history teacher at Capistrano Valley High School" was invalid (Ritchey 2011). A student had charged that the teacher's hostile remarks about creationism violated the Establishment Clause, or the barrier between church and state, while the court stated that the teacher's challenge...

Courts. [16 Nov 2011]
http://www.uscourts.gov/FederalCourts/UnderstandingtheFederalCourts/CourtofAppeals.aspx

"Judicial review." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Oxford University Press, 1996,

2003. Answers.com 16 Nov. 2011. http://www.answers.com/topic/judicial-review

"Judicial review." The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States. Oxford University Press, 1992, 2005. Answers.com 16 Nov. 2011.

http://www.answers.com/topic/judicial-review

Liptak, Adam. "Justices to hear healthcare case as race heats up." The New York Times.

15 Nov 2011. [16 Nov 2011] http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/15/us/supreme-court-to-hear-case-challenging-health-law.html

Longley, Robert. "U.S. Federal Court System."

[16 Nov 2011] http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/uscourtsystem/a/fedcourts.htm

Maybury v. Madison. U.S. Street Law. [16 Nov 2011]

http://www.streetlaw.org/en/landmark/cases/marbury_v_madison#Tab=Overview

Richey, Walter. "U.S. judges rule for teacher who called creationism 'superstitious nonsense.'"

Christian Science Monitor. 19 Aug 2011. [16 Nov 2011]

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2011/0819/U.S.-judges-rule-for-teacher-who-called-creationism-superstitious-nonsense

Schoenberg, Tom & Andrew Harris. "Obama healthcare law ruled constitutional." Business

15 Nov 2011. [16 Nov 2011] http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-15/obama-health-care-law-ruled-constitutional-by-appeals-court.html