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The federal court system decides both civil and criminal cases. Criminal cases involve crimes prosecuted by the government, not private citizens (e.g., murder, theft, and assault). Civil cases are lawsuits brought by private parties. Federal courts rule only on cases that involve federal constitutional or statutory law or cases that involve parties from two different states. The U.S. Supreme Court has the final authority in interpreting the U.S. Constitution and federal statutes. State courts also decide both civil and criminal cases. State courts rule on cases involving state and statutory law, but also may rule on cases involving the federal Constitution and statutory laws.

The role of the courts is to resolve disputes involving citizens, organizations, and the government. Courts also decide the guilt or innocence of those accused of crimes. In education, most disputes are decided in civil court. Courts decide conflicts by applying law to a given set of facts and interpreting the meaning of the law in that context. It is the function of courts to say what the Constitution or statute means in a given case, set forth the findings of fact that the interpretation is based on, and enter an order commanding the parties in the case to take certain action (or, if the case is on appeal, the judge may enter an order for another court to take action). If there is no codified law (no constitutional or statutory provision) found controlling in a case, the court is likely to rely on common law (legal precedents) in rendering a decision (Hubsch, 1989; H. R. Turnbull & Turnbull, 2000). In reading about court rulings, remember that decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court are binding throughout the country. The decisions of the lower federal courts are binding only within their jurisdictions, and the decisions of state courts are binding only within the state (Russo, 2018).