137 Politics and Law Trivia Questions and Answers
Every question comes with its answer, an explanation of why, and a named source. Sorted easy to hard, so you can start where you like.
Free, in your browser. No account needed. Politics and Law is one of 30 categories you can pick.
Easy Politics and Law Trivia Questions
-
What is a jury called when it cannot reach the level of agreement the law requires for a verdict?
A hung jury
A jury that deadlocks is said to be hung, and the judge normally discharges it without a verdict. The case can then be tried again in front of an entirely new jury.
-
What is an official pardon for a group of people called?
Amnesty
Amnesty is an official act that extends pardon or legal forgiveness to a group for specified offenses.
-
A defendant is found not guilty. What is that outcome called?
An acquittal
An acquittal is a finding that the case against the defendant has not been proved, which clears them of the charge. A pardon is a different thing: it forgives a conviction that has already happened.
-
What is a request for a higher court to review a lower court's decision called?
An appeal
An appeal asks a higher court to review what a lower court decided, usually on the ground that the law was applied wrongly or the trial was unfair. It is a review of that decision rather than a fresh trial of the facts.
-
Most witnesses may only describe what they saw or heard. Which kind of witness is also allowed to give an opinion?
An expert witness
An expert witness is called because of specialized knowledge or training, and may give an opinion within that field, such as what a DNA sample or an X-ray shows. Every other witness is limited to the facts they personally observed.
-
Which two chambers make up the Parliament of Australia?
Senate and House of Representatives
Australia has a bicameral Parliament. The Senate gives equal representation to the states, while the House of Representatives is based mainly on population.
-
How certain does a court have to be before it convicts someone of a crime?
Beyond reasonable doubt
Criminal cases use the highest standard of proof, beyond reasonable doubt, because a conviction can cost a person their liberty. Civil cases are decided on the lower balance of probabilities, which asks only whether one side's account is likelier than the other's.
-
What did the US Supreme Court rule in Brown v. Board of Education?
Segregating public schools by race is unconstitutional
The 1954 decision held that separate public schools for Black and white children violated the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of equal protection, overturning the separate-but-equal doctrine that had stood since 1896.
-
What does CIA stand for?
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency handles foreign intelligence, while the FBI handles domestic law enforcement and counter-intelligence.
-
Which British monarch became king at age 73?
Charles III
He had been heir apparent since his mother's accession in 1952, the longest wait of any heir apparent in British history before he finally acceded in 2022.
-
A president vetoing a bill passed by Congress illustrates what principle?
Checks and balances
A presidential veto illustrates checks and balances because it limits Congress’s power to pass laws without executive approval. Congress can override the veto with a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate.
-
A fingerprint at the scene does not show anyone committing the crime, but it supports an inference that they were there. What kind of evidence is that?
Circumstantial evidence
Circumstantial evidence establishes a fact by inference rather than proving it outright, unlike direct evidence such as an eyewitness who saw the act itself. A case can be proved on circumstantial evidence alone when the inferences are strong enough.
-
What kind of case usually seeks a remedy between private parties?
Civil lawsuit
A civil lawsuit usually resolves a dispute between private parties by seeking a remedy such as money damages or a court order. Unlike a criminal case, its main purpose is generally to compensate an injured party or enforce a legal right rather than impose punishment.
-
Someone who defies a judge's order or disrupts a hearing can be punished on the spot for what?
Contempt of court
Contempt of court covers conduct that defies the court's authority or disrupts its proceedings, from shouting down a judge to refusing to answer a lawful question. Courts can punish it immediately, which is unusual, since almost every other offense needs a trial of its own first.
-
Which legal protection covers original creative works?
Copyright
Copyright protects original works of authorship, including writing, music, and visual art, subject to statutory limits.
-
Which field studies crime as a social phenomenon, including its causes, patterns and prevention?
Criminology
Criminology asks why crime happens, who commits it and what actually reduces it, drawing on sociology, psychology and statistics. Forensic science applies laboratory technique to physical evidence, penology deals with punishment and prisons, and jurisprudence is the theory and philosophy of law.
-
What is it called when a lawyer questions a witness who was called by the opposing side?
Cross-examination
Each side questions its own witnesses first, which is direct examination, and the other side then gets its turn in cross-examination. Cross-examination is where an account is tested for gaps, bias and contradictions.
-
What is a false statement that harms another's reputation called?
Defamation
Defamation is a false statement of fact communicated to others that causes legally recognized harm to reputation, subject to applicable defenses.
-
What rule generally bars a second prosecution for the same offense after acquittal?
Double jeopardy
Double-jeopardy protections generally prevent a person from being tried again for the same offense after an acquittal or qualifying conviction.
-
Which ancient city-state is generally credited with developing the earliest well-known democracy?
Athens
Athens developed a direct democracy in the 5th century BCE. Its citizenship rules were narrow, excluding women, enslaved people, and many residents.
-
Which restriction does the Eighth Amendment place on government?
Cruel and unusual punishment
The Eighth Amendment prohibits the government from imposing cruel and unusual punishment. It also protects people from excessive bail and excessive fines.
-
How many electors are in the US Electoral College?
538
The Electoral College has 538 electors: 435 representing the House, 100 representing the Senate, and 3 representing Washington, D.C.
-
What is an official ban on trade with a country called?
Embargo
An embargo is an official government ban or restriction on trade with a particular country, often used to apply political or economic pressure. The word comes from the Spanish verb "embargar," meaning to seize or detain.
-
Which political system divides power between a central government and regional ones?
Federalism
Federalism splits sovereignty: the central government and the regional ones each hold powers the other cannot simply revoke, usually written into a constitution. The United States, Germany and India are federal. France is unitary, its regions holding only what the centre chooses to delegate.
-
The 15th Amendment prohibits denying voting rights based on what?
Race or color
Ratified in 1870, the 15th Amendment was designed to protect the voting rights of Black men after the Civil War. Later laws were needed to enforce that promise against widespread suppression.
-
What phrase means declining to answer to avoid self-incrimination?
Taking the Fifth
“Taking the Fifth” means invoking the Fifth Amendment right not to be compelled to testify against yourself in a criminal case. It is also commonly called “pleading the Fifth.”
-
Which freedoms are protected by the opening amendment of the US Bill of Rights?
Religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition
The First Amendment protects five related freedoms: religion, speech, press, peaceful assembly, and petitioning the government. These protections constrain government action, not every private decision.
-
The Fourth Amendment protects people against what?
Unreasonable searches and seizures
The Fourth Amendment guards against unreasonable government searches and seizures. Warrants generally require probable cause and must identify what is being searched or taken.
-
How many terms did Franklin D. Roosevelt serve as US president?
Four terms
FDR served from 1933 until his death in 1945 and remains the only US president elected four times. The 22nd Amendment later limited presidents to two elected terms.
-
What do the Geneva Conventions primarily regulate?
Treatment of people in wartime
The Geneva Conventions protect wounded and sick soldiers, prisoners of war, and civilians during armed conflict. They are central to modern international humanitarian law.
-
What conflict did the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 largely bring to an end?
The Troubles in Northern Ireland
The agreement created a power-sharing framework in Northern Ireland and set principles for relations within the island and with Britain. It sharply reduced the violence known as the Troubles.
-
In what year did the Gunpowder Plot take place?
1605
Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators planned to blow up the House of Lords on November 5, 1605. The plot was discovered before the explosion could occur.
-
What is it called when a witness repeats what another person told them, rather than what they saw or heard happen themselves?
Hearsay
Hearsay is second-hand evidence: a witness reporting what someone else said, offered to show that what was said is true. Courts restrict it because the person who originally said it is not there to be questioned about it.
-
What process formally accuses a public official of serious misconduct?
Impeachment
Impeachment is a formal process for charging a public official with alleged misconduct; removal, where applicable, is decided separately.
-
What power lets a court assess whether a law violates a constitution?
Judicial review
Judicial review lets a court refuse to enforce a law it finds unconstitutional. In the United States it was never written into the constitution; the Supreme Court claimed it for itself in Marbury v. Madison in 1803.
-
The League of Nations was created in the aftermath of which war?
World War I
The League of Nations was founded in 1920, its covenant written into the Treaty of Versailles, to stop another war like the one that had just ended. The United States, whose president Woodrow Wilson had championed the idea, never joined.
-
What did Magna Carta establish about the English king's authority?
That the king was bound by the law
Magna Carta, sealed by King John at Runnymede in 1215, tied the crown to written rules. Most famously, no free man could be seized or imprisoned except by the lawful judgement of his equals and the law of the land. Nearly every specific clause was later repealed, but the principle that the king stood under the law rather than above it outlasted all of them.
-
Which US Supreme Court case established the principle of judicial review?
Marbury v. Madison
In Marbury v. Madison, decided in 1803, the Supreme Court asserted the power to declare an act of Congress unconstitutional. This became a central feature of US constitutional law.
-
In British politics, what does MP stand for?
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is elected to represent a constituency in the House of Commons.
-
What did Miranda v. Arizona require police to do before custodial interrogation?
Inform suspects of their rights
The 1966 decision led to the familiar Miranda warning about the right to remain silent and the right to counsel. The warning protects the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
-
In what year was NATO founded?
1949
NATO was founded in 1949 at the start of the Cold War; the Soviet bloc Warsaw Pact followed in 1955.
-
Which tort requires proving duty, breach, causation and damage?
Negligence
Negligence generally involves a duty of reasonable care, a breach of that duty, and harm legally connected to the breach.
-
Which US constitutional amendment prohibited denying the vote on the basis of sex?
The 19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920 after decades of suffragist organizing. Its text barred states and the federal government from denying the vote because of sex.
-
What does NGO stand for?
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization operates independently of any government, though many receive government funding.
-
In a criminal trial, what does the defense have to prove for the defendant to be found not guilty?
Nothing at all
The burden of proof rests entirely on the prosecution, so a defendant who presents no evidence at all can still be acquitted if the case against them was never proved beyond reasonable doubt. A handful of special defenses, such as insanity, are exceptions where the defense must prove its own case.
-
Whom did the main Nuremberg Trials prosecute after World War II?
Nazi leaders
The International Military Tribunal sat at Nuremberg in 1945 and 1946 and put the surviving leaders of the Nazi regime on trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. It established that individuals could be held personally responsible under international law and that following orders was no defence. Japan's wartime leadership was tried separately, in Tokyo.
-
Which intellectual-property right protects a qualifying invention?
Patent
Exclusive rights to make, use, or sell the invention typically last 20 years from the filing date, granted in exchange for publicly disclosing exactly how the invention works so the knowledge eventually becomes public.
-
What is the crime of deliberately lying under oath called?
Perjury
Perjury is knowingly giving false evidence after swearing or affirming to tell the truth. It is a serious offense in its own right because the whole system of proof depends on sworn answers being true.
-
What criminal-case deal can exchange an admission of guilt for reduced charges?
Plea bargain
A plea bargain is an agreement in which the defendant pleads guilty in exchange for a concession from the prosecution.
-
What is a court following when it applies stare decisis?
Precedent
Stare decisis is Latin for to stand by things decided. It anchors common-law systems such as the US and the UK, where a higher court's ruling binds lower courts deciding similar cases, while civil-law countries lean far more on written codes than on case law.
-
What type of election lets a party's voters choose its nominee before the general election?
Primary election
In a primary, a party's own voters cast secret ballots to pick the candidate who will carry the party's name into the general election. Caucuses and conventions settle the same question a different way, through meetings of members or delegates rather than a polling-booth vote.
-
Which electoral system gives a party that wins 30 percent of the vote roughly 30 percent of the seats?
Proportional representation
Proportional representation allocates legislative seats roughly in proportion to the votes each party receives. It can give smaller parties a better chance of winning seats than systems focused on one winner in each district.
-
Approximately how long did Queen Elizabeth II reign?
70 years
Elizabeth II reigned from 1952 until her death in 2022, for just over 70 years.
-
What minimum attendance is needed for a body to conduct official business?
Quorum
A quorum is the minimum number of members who must be present for a deliberative body to validly conduct business.
-
What is it called when a judge steps aside from a case because of a possible conflict of interest?
Recusal
Recusal is a judge withdrawing from a case in which their impartiality could reasonably be questioned, such as a personal or financial link to one of the parties. The case is then reassigned to a different judge.
-
What is a direct public vote on a proposal called?
Referendum
A referendum submits a specific question or proposal to voters for a direct decision.
-
Which of these countries is a republic rather than a monarchy?
France
France is a republic, while Japan, Spain, and Sweden are constitutional monarchies.
-
What principle requires officials and citizens to follow publicly known laws?
Rule of law
The rule of law means laws govern conduct and apply through established procedures, rather than power or personal preference alone.
-
Articles I, II and III of the US Constitution each create a different branch of government. Which principle does that structure embody?
Separation of powers
Article I creates Congress, Article II the presidency, and Article III the courts, each with its own powers and checks on the others. The framers borrowed the idea largely from the Enlightenment philosopher Montesquieu, who argued that liberty depended on keeping these functions separate.
-
Which Enlightenment philosopher proposed dividing government into legislative, executive, and judicial branches?
Montesquieu
Montesquieu set out this three-way separation of powers in his 1748 work The Spirit of the Laws.
-
What court order requires a person to testify or provide records?
Subpoena
The word comes from Latin sub poena, meaning under penalty, since ignoring one can lead to a contempt-of-court charge. Courts distinguish a subpoena ad testificandum, which compels testimony, from a subpoena duces tecum, which compels the production of documents or other evidence.
-
A lawyer objects to a question and the judge agrees the objection is a good one. What has the judge done to it?
Sustained it
A judge who accepts an objection sustains it, and the witness does not answer that question. An objection the judge rejects is overruled, and the questioning simply carries on.
-
What is the evidence a witness gives out loud in court called?
Testimony
Testimony is evidence a witness gives in person, under oath or affirmation, in answer to questions put to them. A sworn statement written down instead is an affidavit.
-
Which court officer keeps order in the courtroom and escorts the jury in and out?
The bailiff
The bailiff keeps order in the room, calls cases and witnesses, and takes charge of the jury. Courts in England and Wales give the same duties to an officer called the usher.
-
What is a lawyer's final speech to the jury, made once all the evidence has been heard, called?
The closing argument
The closing argument is each side's last chance to tell the jury what the evidence adds up to. It is argument rather than evidence, so no new facts may be introduced in it.
-
In a criminal trial, 'the accused' is another way of naming which party?
The defendant
The defendant is the party answering the case in court, and in a criminal trial that person is often called simply the accused. The person who first reported the offense is the complainant.
-
In a courtroom, who is meant by 'the bench'?
The judge, or the judges together
The bench means the judge, or the judiciary as a body, and the name comes from the raised seat a judge occupies. A lawyer who approaches the bench is going up to speak to the judge.
-
In a civil case, what is the party who brings the claim to court usually called?
The plaintiff
A civil case starts when the plaintiff files a claim against a defendant, asking the court for a remedy such as money or an order to do something. Courts in England and Wales have called that party the claimant since 1999.
-
In a criminal case, what is the side that brings the case against the accused called?
The prosecution
Criminal cases are brought on behalf of the state or the public by the prosecution, and the side arguing for the accused is the defense. A private individual suing another person is a plaintiff rather than a prosecutor.
-
What is the jury's formal finding at the end of a trial called?
The verdict
The verdict is the jury's finding on whether the case has been proved. It settles guilt or liability only, and any punishment is decided separately and afterwards.
-
What is the job of the juror known as the foreman, or foreperson?
To chair the jury's discussion and announce its verdict
The foreman chairs the discussion in the jury room and speaks for the jury when the verdict is delivered in court. Their own vote counts for no more than any other juror's.
-
In a jury trial, what is the jury's job, as distinct from the judge's?
To decide what the facts are
The jury decides questions of fact: what happened, whom to believe, and whether the case has been proved. The judge rules on questions of law, decides what evidence the jury may hear, and passes sentence after a conviction.
-
What is a wrongful act that causes civil harm called?
Tort
The word comes from Latin tortum, twisted or wrong, by way of Old French. Unlike a crime, a tort is pursued by the injured person rather than the state, with money damages the usual remedy; negligence and defamation are common examples.
-
What identifies the source of goods or services?
Trademark
A trademark identifies and distinguishes the source of goods or services. The alternatives are other forms of intellectual property.
-
How many seats are in the UK House of Commons under its current arrangement?
650
The House of Commons has 650 constituencies. Each elected MP represents one constituency, although boundary reviews can change how those seats are drawn.
-
Where do the Houses of Parliament meet?
The Palace of Westminster
A fire gutted the medieval palace in 1834, and the Gothic Revival building that replaced it, designed by Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin, is what visitors see on the Thames today. Its clock tower holds the bell known as Big Ben.
-
How many permanent members does the UN Security Council have?
Five
The permanent five are China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Each has veto power over substantive Security Council resolutions.
-
In what year did the UN General Assembly adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
1948
The declaration was adopted on December 10, 1948. It is not itself a treaty, but it became a foundational statement for later human-rights law and institutions.
-
How many amendments make up the U.S. Bill of Rights?
Ten amendments
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791. Twelve were originally sent to the states, but two of them were not approved at the time.
-
How is a president's formal refusal to approve legislation termed?
Veto
A veto is a president’s formal refusal to approve legislation. Congress can override a presidential veto with a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate.
Medium Politics and Law Trivia Questions
-
A witness who does not wish to swear a religious oath may promise to tell the truth by making what instead?
An affirmation
An affirmation is a solemn promise to tell the truth with no religious wording, and it carries exactly the same legal weight as a sworn oath. A witness who lies after affirming commits perjury just as one who lies under oath does.
-
In US presidential nominating, what is the local party meeting where supporters gather in person to back a candidate, instead of casting a ballot at a polling station?
Caucus
A caucus is a neighbourhood meeting of party members who turn up at a set hour, hear the case for each candidate and then declare their support in the room. The Iowa caucuses opened the US nominating calendar for half a century.
-
Which UK prime minister served two separate terms, before and after Clement Attlee?
Winston Churchill
Churchill served as prime minister from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955, with Attlee serving in between.
-
What did Dred Scott v. Sandford rule about people of African descent?
They could not be US citizens
In 1857, the Supreme Court held that people of African descent, whether enslaved or free, could not be US citizens.
-
What pair of constitutional provisions contains Due Process Clauses?
The 5th and 14th Amendments
The Due Process Clauses are found in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. The Fifth Amendment limits the federal government, while the Fourteenth extends due process protections against state governments.
-
About how long did the English Civil Wars last, from the first fighting to the last?
About nine years
The English Civil Wars ran from 1642 to 1651, three separate wars between Parliament and the crown, ending at the Battle of Worcester. Charles I was executed in 1649, between the second war and the third.
-
What process sends a person to another jurisdiction for prosecution or to serve a sentence?
Extradition
Extradition is the formal process of surrendering a person to another jurisdiction for trial or punishment. It can apply to both accused individuals and convicted fugitives who fled before completing their sentences.
-
What Senate tactic delays a final vote through prolonged floor debate?
Filibuster
A filibuster is a Senate tactic that delays or blocks a vote by prolonging debate. The term comes from a Dutch word meaning “pirate.”
-
Which US amendment contains the Equal Protection Clause?
The 14th Amendment
The Equal Protection Clause is part of the Fourteenth Amendment. The other options are real US constitutional amendments but do not contain that clause.
-
Which U.S. leader presided over the Constitutional Convention of 1787?
George Washington
George Washington served as president of the Constitutional Convention held in Philadelphia in 1787.
-
Which US president became both vice president and president without winning a national election for either office?
Gerald Ford
Ford was appointed vice president after Spiro Agnew resigned and became president when Richard Nixon resigned. He is the only person to hold both offices without being elected to either.
-
What legal protection challenges unlawful detention?
Habeas corpus
The Latin phrase means 'you shall have the body': a court orders that a detained person be brought before it in person, so a judge can decide whether the detention is actually lawful and order release if it is not.
-
What do the Hague Conventions primarily regulate?
Conduct and methods of warfare
The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 focused on how wars are conducted, including weapons and methods of combat. The Geneva Conventions focus more directly on protected people.
-
Which English king became monarch at nine months old?
Henry VI
He inherited the throne when his father, Henry V, died in 1422, and a council of regents ruled in his name for years. In 1431 he was also crowned king of France in Paris, the only English monarch ever crowned ruler of both countries.
-
What formal charging document does a U.S. grand jury issue?
Indictment
A U.S. grand jury issues an indictment, formally charging someone with a crime. Grand-jury proceedings and indictments are often sealed until the charges are publicly announced.
-
In what year did Israel and Egypt sign their peace treaty?
1979
The treaty followed the Camp David Accords brokered by US President Jimmy Carter. It established the first peace agreement between Israel and an Arab state.
-
Which Arab state signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1994?
Jordan
Jordan signed its peace treaty with Israel in October 1994, ending the state of war between them and settling the border, security arrangements and the sharing of water. It made Jordan the second Arab state to make peace with Israel.
-
What did the Supreme Court hold in McCulloch v. Maryland?
Congress has powers implied beyond those the Constitution lists
The 1819 ruling upheld the national bank, holding that the Necessary and Proper Clause gives Congress implied powers to carry out the ones the Constitution spells out. It also struck down Maryland's tax on the bank, on the reasoning that a state power to tax the federal government would amount to a power to destroy it.
-
When did Napoleon crown himself Emperor of France?
1804
Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of France in 1804, during a ceremony at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. He famously placed the crown on his own head rather than allowing Pope Pius VII to crown him.
-
The Napoleonic Code belongs to which legal tradition?
Civil law
The Napoleonic Code is a foundational civil-law code and influenced legal systems in many countries.
-
Which of these words for a legislature comes from the Old French for "to talk"?
Parliament
The same French root gives English parley, a meeting between opposing sides to negotiate terms or a truce. Early parliaments were literally occasions for talk: formal sessions where nobles and clergy raised grievances before the king.
-
Plessy v. Ferguson endorsed what legal rule?
Separate but equal
The 1896 Supreme Court ruling held that states could force black and white Americans into separate facilities so long as those facilities were nominally equal. In practice they never were, and the doctrine stood for 58 years until Brown v. Board of Education struck it down in 1954.
-
Which US president died after the shortest time in office?
William Henry Harrison
William Henry Harrison died 31 days after taking office in 1841, the shortest US presidential term.
-
A speedy, public trial is guaranteed by which amendment to the US Constitution?
The 6th Amendment
The Sixth Amendment covers the trial itself: a speedy and public hearing before an impartial jury, notice of the charges, the right to confront the witnesses against you, to compel witnesses in your favour, and to have a lawyer for the defence.
-
Which ancient law code is famous for its "eye for an eye" provisions?
The Code of Hammurabi
The Code of Hammurabi is a collection of laws issued under the Babylonian king Hammurabi in the 18th century BCE.
-
Who traditionally elects the pope?
The College of Cardinals
The pope is elected by the College of Cardinals in a conclave held after the previous pope's death or resignation.
-
Which 1789 French revolutionary document proclaimed liberty and equality?
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Adopted in August 1789, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen stated foundational principles of liberty, equality, and popular sovereignty.
-
Which institution is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations?
The International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice settles legal disputes between states and gives advisory opinions on international legal questions.
-
Which U.S. government branch has the power to declare war?
The legislative branch
Article I of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress, the legislative branch, the power to declare war, and separately forbids the states from doing so.
-
Which U.S. constitutional amendment abolished slavery?
The Thirteenth Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment, ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except as punishment for a crime.
-
Which treaty formally ended the First World War between Germany and the Allied powers?
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles, signed in 1919, established the postwar settlement between Germany and the Allied powers.
-
Which document begins with the words "We the People"?
The United States Constitution
The opening words of the U.S. Constitution are "We the People," introducing its statement that governmental authority derives from the people.
-
Which conflict ended with the 1783 Treaty of Paris?
The American Revolutionary War
Signed on 3 September 1783, the treaty ended the American Revolutionary War, with Britain recognising the independence of the thirteen former colonies and setting their western boundary at the Mississippi. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John Jay negotiated for the American side.
-
What level of state approval is normally required to ratify a US constitutional amendment?
Three-fourths of the states
Article V requires approval by three-fourths of the states, through legislatures or conventions depending on the amendment. The high threshold is meant to require broad national consensus.
-
In United States v. Nixon, what did the Supreme Court hold about a president's claim of executive privilege?
It must yield to a subpoena for evidence in a criminal trial
The Court ruled unanimously in 1974 that a general claim of confidentiality could not defeat a subpoena for evidence in a criminal trial, and ordered Nixon to hand over the White House tapes. He resigned about two weeks later.
-
In what year did the United States ratify the amendment lowering the voting age to 18?
1971
The 26th Amendment was ratified in 1971. Arguments that young people old enough to be drafted should be allowed to vote helped drive the change.
-
Which city hosted the diplomatic congress that reorganized Europe after Napoleon's defeat?
Vienna
The Congress of Vienna met from 1814 to 1815 to establish a new balance of power in Europe after the Napoleonic Wars.
-
How many times is a bill formally considered in a Westminster-style legislature?
Three readings
UK Parliament describes first, second, and third readings as the bill’s formal stages.
Hard Politics and Law Trivia Questions
-
In a lawsuit, what is someone with no stake in the outcome who is allowed to file arguments for the court to consider called?
Amicus curiae
An amicus curiae, Latin for friend of the court, is a person or organisation that is not a party to the case but is permitted to submit a brief setting out arguments or information the judges might otherwise never hear.
-
Which Athenian statesman's reforms of about 508 BCE are usually called the start of Athenian democracy?
Cleisthenes
Cleisthenes reorganized the Athenian citizen body around 508 BCE, and his reforms are conventionally treated as the founding of Athenian democracy. Solon's reforms came in the 590s BCE, and Pericles led Athens decades later.
-
Which pamphlet did Thomas Paine publish in 1776?
Common Sense
Thomas Paine's Common Sense argued for American independence from British rule and became an influential revolutionary pamphlet. His Rights of Man came fifteen years later, in 1791.
-
In what year was the Genocide Convention adopted?
1948
The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was adopted after World War II. It committed states to prevent and punish genocide as an international crime.
-
What type of activity did Gibbons v. Ogden clarify the federal government could regulate?
Interstate commerce
The 1824 case involved competing steamboat licenses and interpreted the Commerce Clause broadly. It confirmed federal authority over commerce crossing state lines.
-
What did the Kellogg-Briand Pact of 1928 aim to do?
Renounce war as an instrument of national policy
The pact renounced war as an instrument of national policy. It had weak enforcement and did not prevent later aggression, but it influenced the development of international criminal law.
-
What did Mapp v. Ohio require of state criminal courts?
Illegally obtained evidence cannot be used
Mapp v. Ohio applied the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule to the states, barring evidence obtained through unconstitutional searches.
-
Which speech test is associated with Schenck v. United States?
Clear and present danger
The 1919 case arose after Charles Schenck mailed leaflets urging resistance to the WWI draft. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote the opinion, comparing unprotected speech to falsely shouting fire in a crowded theater and causing a panic.
-
In the US, what did the Supreme Court's Terry v. Ohio ruling allow police to do?
A brief stop and pat-down on reasonable suspicion
The 1968 ruling let an officer who reasonably suspects someone is armed and involved in crime stop them briefly and pat down their outer clothing for weapons. That is a lower bar than the probable cause an arrest requires, and 'Terry stop' became the name for the practice.
-
Which international convention established that a person fleeing persecution may not be sent back to the country they fled?
The 1951 Refugee Convention
The Refugee Convention, adopted in 1951, defines who qualifies as a refugee and establishes protections including non-refoulement.
-
Which court gives authoritative interpretations of European Union law?
The Court of Justice of the European Union
The Court of Justice of the European Union ensures that EU law is interpreted and applied consistently across member states.
-
Which 1689 English document affirmed Parliament's role and certain individual liberties?
The English Bill of Rights
The English Bill of Rights of 1689 limited royal power and affirmed rights including parliamentary consent for taxation and free elections.
-
Which 1713 peace settlement reshaped Europe after the War of the Spanish Succession?
The Peace of Utrecht
The Peace of Utrecht consisted of treaties signed in 1713 that reshaped European power after the War of the Spanish Succession.
-
Which 1648 settlement is commonly linked to the rise of the modern state system?
The Peace of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia ended major phases of the Thirty Years' War and is traditionally associated with the development of state sovereignty in international relations.
-
Which agreement set the terms for Hong Kong's 1997 return to Chinese sovereignty?
The Sino-British Joint Declaration
The 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration set the terms for Hong Kong's return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.
-
Which country has the oldest written national constitution still in operation?
The United States
The United States Constitution was signed in 1787 and is the oldest written national constitution still in continuous use.
-
What 1961 treaty codified the rules for embassies and their staff?
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 codifies rules concerning diplomatic missions, privileges, and immunities.
-
The Treaty of Kadesh was made between which two powers?
Hittite and Egyptian empires
The treaty followed the Battle of Kadesh and was made between Ramesses II's Egypt and the Hittite Empire. It is one of the earliest surviving written peace agreements.
-
Who was the principal author of Virginia's 1776 Declaration of Rights?
George Mason
George Mason drafted Virginia's Declaration of Rights, adopted in June 1776. Its wording on inherent rights fed into Jefferson's Declaration of Independence a few weeks later, and into Madison's U.S. Bill of Rights.
Answered in full
These come up often enough that each one has its own page.
- How many electors are in the US Electoral College?
- Which US amendment contains the Equal Protection Clause?
- How many terms did Franklin D. Roosevelt serve as US president?
- In what year did the Gunpowder Plot take place?
- How many permanent members does the UN Security Council have?
For younger players
The easiest of these are collected on their own page: Politics and Law trivia questions for kids.
Play it instead of reading it
All 137 are in the game, one at a time, in a random order.
Free, in your browser. No account needed. Politics and Law is one of 30 categories you can pick.