What is judicial activism?

An approach in which justices readily use judicial review to strike down laws or overturn precedent, reading the Constitution broadly so that the Court's rulings shape public policy.

What is judicial restraint?

An approach in which justices defer to the elected branches and to precedent, striking down laws only when they clearly breach the Constitution and leaving policy choices to Congress and the states.

What criticisms are made of judicial activism?

Unelected justices with life tenure end up making policy that should belong to elected representatives — an 'imperial judiciary' — and bold rulings can inflame political conflict for decades, as Roe v Wade (1973) did.

What criticisms are made of judicial restraint?

Deferring to elected majorities can leave minority rights unprotected: the Court upheld segregation in Plessy v Ferguson (1896) and the internment of Japanese Americans in Korematsu v United States (1944).

Why is it misleading to equate judicial activism with liberal justices?

Activism describes a willingness to overturn laws or precedent, not a political direction: the liberal Warren Court of the 1950s and 1960s was activist, but so was the conservative majority that overturned Roe v Wade in 2022.

What was the impact of District of Columbia v Heller (2008) on public policy?

The Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep a handgun at home for self-defence, striking down Washington DC's handgun ban and limiting how far governments can regulate guns.

Edexcel A-Level Politics 9PL0

Democracy and Participation

Topic overview Current systems of representative and direct democracy A wider franchise and debates over suffrage Pressure groups and other influences Think tanks, lobbyists and corporations Rights in context

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The US Supreme Court and Civil Rights

Judicial activism, restraint and public policy

3 things to know
Component 3

Overview

Judicial activism and restraint and the criticisms of each, why activism is not a liberal trait, and the Court's impact on public policy in Heller, Obergefell, Dobbs, West Virginia v EPA, Loper Bright, Trump v United States and the 2026 tariffs ruling.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started

Process

What was the impact of Obergefell v Hodges (2015) on public policy?

Process

What was the significance of Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo (2024) for public policy?

Process

What was the impact of Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization (2022) on public policy?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1
What is judicial activism?
Model answer
An approach in which justices readily use judicial review to strike down laws or overturn precedent, reading the Constitution broadly so that the Court's rulings shape public policy.
2
What is judicial restraint?
Model answer
An approach in which justices defer to the elected branches and to precedent, striking down laws only when they clearly breach the Constitution and leaving policy choices to Congress and the states.
3
What criticisms are made of judicial activism?
Model answer
Unelected justices with life tenure end up making policy that should belong to elected representatives — an 'imperial judiciary' — and bold rulings can inflame political conflict for decades, as Roe v Wade (1973) did.
4
What criticisms are made of judicial restraint?
Model answer
Deferring to elected majorities can leave minority rights unprotected: the Court upheld segregation in Plessy v Ferguson (1896) and the internment of Japanese Americans in Korematsu v United States (1944).
5
Why is it misleading to equate judicial activism with liberal justices?
Model answer
Activism describes a willingness to overturn laws or precedent, not a political direction: the liberal Warren Court of the 1950s and 1960s was activist, but so was the conservative majority that overturned Roe v Wade in 2022.
6
What was the impact of District of Columbia v Heller (2008) on public policy?
Model answer
The Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep a handgun at home for self-defence, striking down Washington DC's handgun ban and limiting how far governments can regulate guns.

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