The organization of courts in the United States.

Each state possesses several sets of trial courts. Courts of minor jurisdiction handle minor criminal and civil matters, such as traffic fines, local ordinance violations, and suits involving small amounts of money. Many states have a set of specialized courts, some of which deal with family matters; there are also special traffic courts; small-claims courts to handle monetary claims of less than $500, special probate courts to handle administration of wills and estates.

At least one federal trial court functions in a state. Also called district courts, they usually travel to the most important cities within its territory, visiting each for two weeks twice a year. There are also several specialized courts, e.g. those which exist for custom and patent appeals and for claims against the federal government.

Appellate tribunals exist in every state and in the federal court system.

In the federal court system an administrator of the courts operates under the supervision of the Supreme Court (which may promulgate rules for the entire federal court system). It collects statistics and other information. There are also conferences of judges, who meet at various levels.

The existence of the dual system of courts with substantive impact supplies alternative tribunals to which cases may be brought. A second consequence of the dual court system is that the interpretation of legal doctrine differs from state to state. The dual-court structure also provides a weapon for both the federal and state governments in their struggle to expand or retain their functions.