Skip to main content

April 14, 2025

District courts issue nationwide injunctions as SCOTUS shadow docket floods

National Constitution Center
National Constitution Center
National Constitution Center
National Constitution Center
National Constitution Center
+15

Federal judges block Trump orders as administration defies courts

The judicial branch holds the power of judicial review to determine whether executive actions violate the Constitution (Question 1, Oyez Marbury v. Madison: https://www.oyez.org/cases/1789-1850/5us137)

Federal district courts have authority to issue nationwide injunctions temporarily or permanently blocking executive actions that violate law or the Constitution (Question 3, U.S. Courts: https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/types-cases/civil-cases)

Congress has authorized approximately 900 federal judgeships across district courts, courts of appeals, and the Supreme Court (Question 10, Federal judicial statistics: https://www.uscourts.gov/statistics-reports/analysis-reports/federal-judicial-caseload-statistics)

👨‍⚖️Judicial Review📜Constitutional Law🏛️Government

Test Your Knowledge

10
Q1

Federal courts can issue injunctions to stop executive actions nationwide.

Q2

What did federal judges say about executive defiance of court orders?

Q3

Which federal court level typically hears initial challenges to executive orders?

Q4

Which branch of government has the power to review executive actions for constitutionality?

Q5

What do constitutional scholars call it when presidents ignore court orders?

5 more questions available

Upgrade to Premium to access all practice questions and unlock advanced quiz features.

Upgrade to Premium

These questions are part of the District courts issue nationwide injunctions as SCOTUS shadow docket floods topic. Master this topic by completing the quiz or exploring each question in detail.

Ready to test your knowledge?

Take the full quiz to master this topic and track your progress.

Start Quiz

People, bills, and sources

Andrew Jackson (President) — defied the Supreme Court’s ruling in Worcester v. Georgia, reportedly stating “John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it” (Question 4, Oyez Worcester v. Georgia

Actor

What you can do

1

To review current nationwide injunctions against executive orders, visit the U.S. Courts’ civil cases page at https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/types-cases/civil-cases and search for injunction filings

2

To understand how emergency petitions reach the Supreme Court, consult the Court’s certiorari procedures at https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/procedures.aspx

3

To verify the total authorized federal judgeships, download the latest report at https://www.uscourts.gov/statistics-reports/analysis-reports/federal-judicial-caseload-statistics (shows ~900 authorized positions)