What was the purpose of creating the US Court of Appeals?

• A. To relieve caseload burden in the Supreme Court and handle a dramatic increase in federal filings
• B. To replace the Supreme Court as the highest court
• C. To preside over all trial proceedings
• D. To handle international law disputes

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is that the US Court of Appeals was created to share the workload of federal appeals, not to replace the Supreme Court. As federal filings grew in the late 19th century, there was a flood of appellate review requests from district courts. The new intermediate appellate courts were designed to handle those reviews—checking for legal errors and ensuring consistency in how federal law is applied—so the Supreme Court could focus on the most significant or complex questions. The Supreme Court remains the highest court, while the courts of appeal relieve its caseload by handling the bulk of routine and intermediate appeals.

That’s why the other options don’t fit the purpose. Trials are conducted in district courts, not the appellate courts. International law disputes may come before federal courts, but solving those isn’t the primary reason for establishing the appellate system. And the appellate courts were not created to replace the Supreme Court as the highest court; their role is to assist in managing the appellate workload while preserving the Supreme Court’s ultimate authority.