cases and controversies

the judicial power vested by Article 3 of the Constitution in this Court and the inferior courts of the United States established by Congress thereunder, extends only to 'cases' and 'controversies' in which the claims of litigants are brought before them for determination by such regular proceedings as are established for the protection and enforcement of rights, or the prevention, redress, or punishment of wrongs; and that their jurisdiction is limited to cases and controversies presented in such form, with adverse litigants, that the judicial power is capable of acting upon them, and pronouncing and carrying into effect a judgment between the parties, and does not extend to the determination of abstract questions or issues framed for the purpose of invoking the advice of the court without real parties or a real case.

This term, as used in the constitution of the United States, embraces claims or contentions of litigants brought before the court for adjudication by regular proceedings established for the protection or enforcement of rights, or the prevention, redress, or punishment of wrongs; and whenever the claim or contention of a party takes such a form that the judicial power is capable of acting upon it, it has become a case or controversy. Interstate Commerce Co.m'n v. Brim-son. 154 U. S. 447, 14 Sup. Ct. 1125, 38 In Ed. 1047; Smith v. Adame, 130 U. S. 167, 9 Sup. Ct. 566, 32 In Ed. 895; In re Railway Com'n (C. C.) 32 Fed. 255. But these two terms are to be distinguished ; for there may be a "separable controversy" within a "case," which may be removed from a state court to a federal court, though the case as a whole is not removable. Snow v. Smith (C. Ct) 88 Fed. 658.
2. A statement of the facts involved in a transaction or series of transactions, drawn up in writing in a technical form, for submission to a court or judge for decision or opinion. Under this meaning of the term are included a "case made" for a motion for new trial, a "case reserved" on the trial of a cause, an "agreed case" for decision without trial, etc.
—Case agreed ou, A formal written enumeration of the facts in a case, assented to by both parties as correct and complete, and submitted to the court by their agreement, in order that a decision may be rendered without a trial, upon the court's conclusions of law upon the facts as stated.

Defined under Case in Black's Law Dictionary.