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Judicial Review.
The greatest power of the US Supreme Court is the ability to interpret the Constitution and evaluate legislation in terms of its constitutionality. The Supreme Court decides cases that raise questions of constitutional interpretation. The Court decides if a law or government action violates the Constitution. This power, known as judicial review, enables the Court to invalidate both federal and state laws when they conflict with its interpretation of the Constitution.
In addition, the Supreme Court has the final say on the meaning of Federal Laws. Often, it is not entirely clear what a law means, and it is up to the courts (when dealing with federal laws, it's the federal court that does this) to determine what they mean. Sometimes, different federal courts will reach different conclusions as to the meaning of a federal statute, and the Supreme Court, if it so chooses, can finally resolve the issue.
To learn more about the process of judicial review, see Related Links, below.
The US Supreme Court serves as the final court of appeal
The most important feature of the Supreme Court is to interpret and define the amendments of the Constitution. This is to make sure that all new laws follow these guidelines properly and do not remove the rights of the people.
In most cases a Supreme Court decision is permanent. The current Supreme Court can change the decision of a previous Supreme Court.
Thomas
The correct name is the Supreme Court of the United States, but most people refer to it as the US Supreme Court. Each state has its own Supreme Court, but the US Supreme Court is the end of the line.