Federal question jurisdiction is a term used in the United States law of civil procedure to refer to the situation in which a United States federal court has subject matter jurisdiction to hear a civil case because the plaintiff has alleged a violation of the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States. Civil procedure is the written set of rules that sets out the process that courts will follow when hearing cases of a civil nature (a civil action). These rules explain how a lawsuit must be commenced, what kind of service of process is required, the types of pleadings, motions, and... The United States federal courts are the system of courts organized under the Constitution and laws of the federal government of the United States. ... Subject matter jurisdiction is a legal term used in civil procedure to indicate that a case must be entered in the proper court of law based on the nature of the claim. ... Civil law has at least three meanings. ... Law (a loanword from Old Norse lag), in politics and jurisprudence, is a set of rules or norms of conduct which mandate, proscribe or permit specified relationships among people and organizations, provide methods for ensuring the impartial treatment of such people, and provide punishments for those who do not follow... A treaty is a binding agreement under international law concluded by subjects of international law, namely states and international organizations. ...

Article III of the United States Constitution permits federal courts to hear such cases, so long as the United States Congress passes a statute to that effect. However, when Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which authorized the newly created federal courts to hear such cases, it initially chose not to allow the lower federal courts to possess federal question jurisdiction for fear that it would make the courts too powerful. The Federalists briefly created such jurisdiction in the Judiciary Act of 1801, but it was repealed the following year, and not restored until 1885. Article Three of the United States Constitution establishes the judicial branch of the federal (national) government. ... The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States of America. ... Judiciary Act of 1789 The Judiciary Act of 1789 (1 Stat 73) established the entire federal judiciary, which initially consisted of a Supreme Court of six judges, 3 circuit courts, and 13 district courts. ... The label Federalist refers to two major groups in the history of the United States of America: Federalists were those statesmen and public figures supporting ratification of the proposed Constitution of the United States between 1787 and 1789. ... ... 1885 is a common year starting on Thursday. ...

Unlike diversity jurisdiction, which is based on the parties coming from different states, federal question jurisdiction no longer has any amount in controversy requirement - Congress eliminated this requirement in actions against the United States in 1976, and in all federal question cases in 1980. Therefore, a federal court can hear a federal question case even if no money is sought by the plaintiff. Diversity jurisdiction is a term used in civil procedure to refer to the situation in which a United States district court has subject matter jurisdiction to hear a civil case because the parties are diverse, meaning that they come from different states. ... Amount in controversy is a term used in United States civil procedure to denote a requirement that persons seeking to bring a lawsuit in a particular court must be suing for a certain minimum amount before that court may hear the case. ... 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... A plaintiff, also known as a claimant, or a complainant is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an action) before a court. ...

The statute enacting federal question jurisdiction requires that the federal question must appear on the face of the plaintiff's complaint. There has been considerable dispute over what constitutes a "federal question" in these circumstances, but it is now settled law that the plaintiff can not seek the jurisdiction of a federal court merely because it anticipates that the defendant is going to raise a defense based on the Constitution, or on a federal statute. This "well-pleaded complaint" rule has been criticized by legal scholars, but Congress has so far chosen not to change the law, although the Supreme Court has made clear it is free to do so. In general use, a complaint is an expression of displeasure, such as poor service at a store, or from a local government, for example. ... In Common law, a defendant is any person who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff in a civil suit or any person who has been named in a criminal information or criminal complaint and stands accused of violating a criminal statute. ...

See also

Diversity jurisdiction Diversity jurisdiction is a term used in civil procedure to refer to the situation in which a United States district court has subject matter jurisdiction to hear a civil case because the parties are diverse, meaning that they come from different states. ...