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Introduction
The North Carolina Court System called General Court of Justice is a unified statewide and state operated system consisting of three divisions: the appellate, superior court, and the district court The District Court is mainly focused on the local level. Districts Courts are the general trial courts in the court system. Trial courts have been divided into four categories: civil, criminal, juvenile, and magistrate These categories are the jurisdiction for this type of court. District Court Judges and District Attorneys also play a very important part in the District Court System. There is a lot of history behind District Courts that explains how the court came to be and how it is run. Along with the District Court, there is also a District Appellate Court. If a case has been lost and the accused wants his/her case to be heard again then that person would take the case to a District Appellate Court.

History and Origin of District Courts
Behind every great court system there is history of how the court was established. In the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress established a system of Circuit Courts to serve as the Trial Courts for most federal criminal cases, for suits between citizens of different states, and for civil suits initiated by the United States Circuit Court is another name given to District Court. This act is what helped establish Circuit Courts. It was a very important act to the United States’ District Court System because this act established a big part of the reason why the court system is well structured. Another important act was the Act of 1801. This act made the effort to institute a stronger federal judiciary. The Federalist majority established nine circuits or districts, and relieved Supreme Court judges of any Circuit Court responsibilities This act made what are called Districts. For example, here in North Carolina the court system is in the Fourth District. Faced with a sharp increase in the volume of federal litigation, Congress in 1869 created a judgeship for each of the nine circuits. The new circuit judge, the designated justice, the district judge, or some combination of the two of them could preside over the circuit courts

District Courts:
The District Court has jurisdiction over almost all cases in juvenile, civil, criminal, and magistrate cases. District courts can hear all types of cases such as child custody cases to parking ticket violation cases. In district court there is what is called, jury duty. Jury duty is when citizens of that district are elected to come hear and help decide which cases they are going to hear.

Civil Courts:
The first category of cases that are held in district court are civil cases. Civil law refers to the branch of law that deals with civil disputes between individuals, and organizations, in which compensations may be rewarded to the victim Civil cases include divorce, custody, child support, and personal injury. These cases also include land disputes, breach of contract, adoption, highway condemnation. However, civil cases of only $10,000 or less can be heard in circuit courts. In civil cases lawyers commonly represent their party, unless that party chooses self representation

Criminal Courts:
Criminal cases are also held in district courts. Crimes that are not as serious as murder, rape, homicide, and so on are held in district courts. Only crimes such as misdemeanors, and infractions are held in circuit courts. A misdemeanor is a minor offence, such as being charged with possession of a small amount of marijuana An infraction is a crime as small as a speeding ticket. Misdemeanors are usually punishable by one year or less in prison Common misdemeanors include shop lifting, graffiti, drunk driving, and assault. An infraction is a much lesser crime than a misdemeanor. Infractions are always non violent crimes. Examples of infractions include, traffic tickets and parking tickets. The consequence for most infractions is a simple fine In criminal court, a person is not allowed to change his or her court date. Another rule is that if someone does not show up on his or her court date, the judge will more than likely issue a warrant for his or her arrest A criminal should always show up on his or her court date, if he or she fails to do so, he or she will only bring his or her self more trouble.

Juvenile Courts:
Juvenile Court is a court of law that has special authority to try and pass judgements for crimes committed by children or adolescence who have not attained the majority age of 18 Juvenile courts exist because of a wide spread belief that children are not always fully responsible for their actions, and that neither they nor society are best served by treating young children like adults The juvenile court categorizes juveniles into three types: those who are charged with criminal conduct, those who have been neglected, and those who have been accused of a status offence or conduct such as truancy or disobedience with reasonable parenting. The majority of juveniles seem to be troubled with one thing or another. The environment they live in can have some effect on the way they behave For example, if a child grows up in poverty they child has a chance of being involved in criminal activity, because of the other people in that neighborhood that he or she could get involved with might influence their decision making. His or her neighbors could be involved with gangs or drugs. Either things such as abuse and neglect also play a large part in the reasons why a child might act out through a crime If a teenager is involved in a gang he or she could also be forced into engaging into criminal activity. For other adolescence the purpose of committing a crime could be a way of rebellion, like a child acting out against a parent or guardian. Juvenile courts are there to provide rehabilitation instead of punishment The idea is to focus on their needs, providing treatment instead of depriving them of their liberty and protecting them against self incrimination

Magistrate Courts:
Magistrate Courts are courts that deal with minor civil offenses. The offenses can be fines up to $5000 and imprisonment of up to six months Magistrates’ courts deal with many civil cases They deal with cases such as, family matters, liquor licensing, betting, and gaming. Cases in Magistrates’ court are usually heard by a panel by three Magistrates, supported by a legally qualified Court Clerk The tribunal that presides over the court is often referred to simply as “the Bench”

Appellate Courts
The District Appellate Court is a court with the authority to review decisions made by lower courts, and to hand down new decisions when appropriate The Appellate court hears and helps determine appeals from the decisions from the trial courts. If an unhappy party in the district courts plans an appeal, the first step usually is to file a notice of appeal in the district court, which informs the court of appeals and other parties An appeal is just another try or step towards winning a case.

Superior Courts
Superior Court is the court that hears all of the appealed cases from District Court. The types of cases that are heard include infractions, all felony criminal cases, and all misdemeanors under $10,000. Most of the time, in civil cases, the juries are often waived, but in the criminal cases 12 jurors must be present. Within the Superior Court there are eight divisions and 46 districts across the state of North Carolina. Judges of the Superior Court rotate in and out every six months through all of the divisions in their district. This rotation is due to the ostracized biased treatment that has the potential to take place if the same judges presided over the same area.