512
Interpreting and Preserving the Constitution
bassadors, other Public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a
State shall be a Party, the Supreme Court shall have Original Jurisdiction.
In all other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have Appellate Jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such Exceptions and under
such Regulations as the Congress shall make.’’
This is an important provision of the Constitution deserving careful
study. It may be observed at the outset that the Supreme Court shall have
two kinds of jurisdiction: original and appellate. Original jurisdiction is
the power to hear and decide a case in the first instance. Unlike appellate
jurisdiction, it flows directly from the Constitution, is self-executing, and
does not depend upon an act of Congress. The Supreme Court’s original
jurisdiction is not significant. It applies to only two classes of cases, and
it is not exclusive. Since 1789, inferior Federal courts have had concurrent
jurisdiction in so