Also known as: branches of government · branch of the government · branches of the government · government branch · governmental branch
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An allocation of governmental authority among three distinct departments—legislative, executive, and judicial—established by the Constitution to prevent concentration of power. Each department exercises functions assigned to it without improper intrusion by the others.
Brendan Burns and other urban voters sued a state apportionment panel alleging that district lines diluted their votes on transportation funding. The panel moved to dismiss on political question grounds. The court denied the motion because the claim presented a justiciable equal protection issue under standards the judiciary can apply.
Boubacar Bah faced deportation after Congress used a one-house veto to override an executive suspension of his removal. He challenged the veto as an improper exercise of legislative power. The court held that the procedure violated the constitutional requirement that legislative action follow the prescribed bicameral presentment process.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Bianca Baker's newspaper obtained and prepared to publish classified documents concerning executive military actions. The executive branch sought an injunction claiming harm to national security. The court refused the injunction because prior restraint on the press exceeded the executive's constitutional authority.
Brittany Bell purchased property subject to a private racial covenant. When neighbors sued to enforce it, the court refused because judicial enforcement would constitute state action violating the Fourteenth Amendment. The decision treated the judiciary as one of the governmental branches bound by constitutional limits.
Brenda Booth alleged federal agents violated her Fourth Amendment rights during a search. She sued the agents for damages even though no statute authorized the action. The court recognized an implied cause of action against federal officers acting under color of authority.
Belinda Baxter and other candidates challenged federal limits on contributions and expenditures. They argued the restrictions infringed protected political speech. The court applied strict scrutiny to the limits because they directly affected core First Amendment activity regulated by Congress.
The Constitution assigns legislative power to Congress, executive power to the President, and judicial power to the courts. Each branch must stay within its assigned role and resist pressure to exceed those limits.
Supporting sources
A case presents a political question when the Constitution textually commits the issue to another branch, no judicially manageable standards exist, or resolution would require an initial policy determination reserved for nonjudicial discretion.
No. The doctrine applies only when one or more of the six Baker factors are present. Many separation-of-powers disputes remain justiciable when they involve concrete rights and judicially manageable standards.
Supporting sources
…of due process extends to state action through its judicial as well as through its legislative, executive or administrative branch of government.” Further examples of such declarations in the opinions of this Court are not lacking.[^maj-14] One of the earliest applications of the prohibitions contained in the Fourteenth Amendment…