Article I Tribunals - Article IV Tribunals

Article IV Tribunals

The United States territorial courts are tribunals established in territories of the United States by the United States Congress, pursuant to its power under Article Four of the United States Constitution, the Territorial Clause. Most United States territorial courts are defunct because the territory under their jurisdiction have become states or been retroceded.

An example is the High Court of American Samoa, a court established pursuant to the Constitution of American Samoa. As an unincorporated territory, the Ratification Act of 1929 vested all civil, judicial and military powers in the President, who in turn delegated authority to the Secretary of the Interior in Executive Order 10264, who in turn promulgated the Constitution of American Samoa, which authorizes the court. As such, the Secretary retains ultimate authority over the courts.

Other United States territorial courts still in existence are:

• District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands
• District Court of Guam
• District Court of the Virgin Islands