JUDICIAL REVIEW

the review by a court of law of some act, or failure to act, by a government official or entity, or by some other legally appointed person or organized body; the review of the decision of a trial court by an appellate court.
In a constitutional law context, judicial review expresses the concept first articulated in Marbury v Madison, 5 US (1 Cranch) 137 (1803) that it is "the province and the duty of the judicial department to say what the law is." Under this doctrine the US Supreme Court and the highest courts of every state have assumed the power and responsibility to decide the constitutionality of the acts of the legislative and executive branches of their respective jurisdictions. Source: Barron's Dictionary of Legal Terms, Steven H. Gifis, 5th Edition; © 2016