Bar Exam Practice Questions 2025 - Free Bar Exam Practice Questions and Study Guide

The concept that best illustrates how the government prevents any one group from having too much power is checks and balances. This system ensures that the different branches of government (executive, legislative, and judicial) can limit each other's powers and influence. Each branch has specific mechanisms to check the power of the others, ensuring that no single branch can dominate or operate without oversight. For instance, while the legislative branch makes laws, the executive has the power to veto legislation, and the judicial branch can declare laws unconstitutional.

In contrast, separation of powers primarily refers to the division of government responsibilities into distinct branches to prevent the concentration of power, but it is the checks and balances that actively provide the mechanisms for monitoring and counteracting power. Federalism relates to the division of power between national and state governments, which also plays a role in power distribution but does not specifically address the internal dynamics within the branches themselves. Judicial review is the power of courts to assess the constitutionality of legislative and executive actions, serving as one of the checks on those branches but not as the overarching system itself. Together, these concepts contribute to a balanced governmental structure, but checks and balances specifically address the prevention of power concentration among branches.