Which statement is true about Congress and the Supreme Court's jurisdiction?

Which statement is true about Congress and the Supreme Court's jurisdiction?

• A. Congress may assign new original jurisdiction to the Supreme Court for constitutional questions.
• B. Congress may regulate only the Supreme Court's appellate jurisdiction, not original jurisdiction.
• C. Congress cannot regulate any aspect of the Supreme Court's jurisdiction.
• D. Congress can require the Supreme Court to hear tax cases as a general rule.

Answer: (B)

Congress can regulate only the Supreme Court's appellate jurisdiction, not its original jurisdiction. Article III vests original jurisdiction for a very limited set of cases (such as those affecting ambassadors, and cases where a state is a party) in the Supreme Court. For all other cases, the Court has appellate jurisdiction, and Congress may shape that appellate jurisdiction by statute—including adding exceptions and regulations. So Congress cannot enlarge or create new original jurisdiction beyond what the Constitution enumerates, but it can govern the path of appeals to the Court. Asking the Court to hear tax cases as a general rule would intrude on the Court’s discretionary docket and go beyond Congress’s constitutional authority over appellate jurisdiction.

Congress can regulate only the Supreme Court's appellate jurisdiction, not its original jurisdiction. Article III vests original jurisdiction for a very limited set of cases (such as those affecting ambassadors, and cases where a state is a party) in the Supreme Court. For all other cases, the Court has appellate jurisdiction, and Congress may shape that appellate jurisdiction by statute—including adding exceptions and regulations. So Congress cannot enlarge or create new original jurisdiction beyond what the Constitution enumerates, but it can govern the path of appeals to the Court. Asking the Court to hear tax cases as a general rule would intrude on the Court’s discretionary docket and go beyond Congress’s constitutional authority over appellate jurisdiction.