United States District Court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. There are 94 such courts. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of both law and equity.
There is a United States bankruptcy court and a number of bankruptcy judges associated with each United States district court. Each federal judicial district has at least one courthouse, and most districts have more than one.
There is at least one judicial district for each state, and one each for Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. District courts in three insular areas—the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands—exercise the same jurisdiction as U.S. district courts. Despite their name, these courts are technically not District Courts of the United States. Judges on these territorial courts do not enjoy the protections of Article III of the Constitution, and serve terms of 10 years rather than for life.
District courts and associated circuit courts
1st Circuit
2nd Circuit
3rd Circuit
4th Circuit
5th Circuit
6th Circuit
7th Circuit
8th Circuit
9th Circuit
- District of Alaska
- District of Arizona
- Central District of California
- Eastern District of California
- Northern District of California
- Southern District of California
- District of Hawaii
- District of Idaho
- District of Montana
- District of Nevada
- District of Oregon
- Eastern District of Washington
- Western District of Washington
10th Circuit
11th Circuit
D.C. Circuit
By State
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
District of Columbia
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
District court judges
There are 677 U.S. District Court judgeships.[1][2]
The number of federal district judge positions is set by the U.S. Congress in Title 28 of the U.S. Code, Section 133, which authorizes a set number of judge positions, or judgeships, making changes and adjustments in these numbers from time to time.
In order to relieve the pressure of trying the hundreds of thousands of cases brought before the federal district courts each year, many trials are tried by juries, along with a presiding judge.[3]
Appointments by president
The chart below shows the number of district court judges confirmed by the U.S. Senate through August 1 of the fourth year of each president's term in office. At this point in the term, President Bill Clinton had the most district court appointments with 168.
Judges by district
- See also: Judicial vacancies in federal courts
The table below displays the number of judges in each district and indicates how many were appointed by presidents from each major political party. It also includes the number of vacancies in a district and how many pending nominations for that district are before the United States Senate. The table can be sorted by clicking the column headers above the line, and you can navigate through the pages by clicking the arrows at the top of the table. It is updated every Monday.
Judicial selection
The district courts are served by Article III federal judges who are appointed for life during "good behavior." They are usually first recommended by senators (or members of the House, occasionally). The President of the United States makes the appointments, which must then be confirmed by the U.S. Senate in accordance with Article III of the United States Constitution.[2]
| Step |  Candidacy Proceeds
|
 Candidacy Halts
|
|---|---|---|
| 1. Recommendation made by Congress Member to the President | President Nominates to Senate Judiciary Committee | President Declines Nomination |
| 2. Senate Judiciary Committee interviews Candidate | Sends candidate to Senate for confirmation | Returns candidate to President, who may re-nominate to Committee |
| 3. Senate votes on candidate confirmation | Candidate becomes federal judge | Candidate does not receive judgeship |
Magistrate judges
The district courts are also served by magistrate judges. Congress created the judicial office of federal magistrate in 1968. In 1990, the position title was changed to magistrate judge. The chief judge of each district appoints one or more magistrate judges, who discharge many of the ancillary duties of district judges so judges can handle more trials. There are both full-time and part-time magistrate judge positions, and these positions are assigned to the district courts according to caseload criteria (subject to funding by Congress). A full-time magistrate judge serves a term of eight years; a part-time magistrate judge's term of office is four years.[4]
Caseloads
The table below shows the number of judgeships and the number of weighted filings per judgeship from September 30, 2017, to September 30, 2019.[5][6] Weighted filings are a metric used by the federal judiciary that accounts for the different amounts of time judges require to resolve types of civil and criminal cases.[7]
There was an average of 513 weighted filings per judgeship across the country's 673 district court judgeships in 2018. In 2019, there was an average of 492 weighted filings per judgeship 2019. Three district courts had more than 1,000 weighted filings per judgeship in both years: Eastern District of Louisiana, District of New Jersey, and Southern District of Indiana.
The chart below details information on total federal court caseloads from 2007 to 2018. The statistics are compiled through September for that year.
| Caseload statistics, 2007-2018 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Cases filed | Cases terminated | Remaining cases | Median time (months) - Criminal | Median time (months) - Civil | Three-year civil cases | Vacant judgeship months | Trials completed per judgeship |
| 2018 | 391,345 | 375,480 | 465,787 | 7 | 9.2 | 73938 | 1541.3 | 16 |
| 2017 | 365,084 | 384,840 | 425,162 | 7.6 | 9.9 | 57155 | 1266.8 | 16 |
| 2016 | 387,687 | 365,842 | 446,051 | 7.5 | 9.2 | 53162 | 762.1 | 17 |
| 2015 | 374,822 | 369,720 | 426,042 | 7.6 | 8.8 | 34377 | 550.6 | 17 |
| 2014 | 392,241 | 359,835 | 424,194 | 7.5 | 8.3 | 30407 | 768.1 | 18 |
| 2013 | 391,652 | 362,228 | 395,184 | 7.3 | 8.5 | 27087 | 784.1 | 19 |
| 2012 | 386,664 | 382,837 | 370,567 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 30309 | 768 | 20 |
| 2011 | 402,885 | 414,739 | 366,098 | 7 | 7.3 | 40439 | 947.1 | 20 |
| 2010 | 394,345 | 419,178 | 373,110 | 6.9 | 7.6 | 45010 | 964.1 | 20 |
| 2009 | 384,902 | 369,801 | 401,448 | 7 | 8.9 | 35282 | 602.5 | 20 |
| 2008 | 371,155 | 337,761 | 385,672 | 7.1 | 8.1 | 21820 | 397.9 | 20 |
| 2007 | 356,311 | 337,435 | 327,882 | 7.5 | 8.6 | 17446 | 424.6 | 20 |
History
For information about when specific federal courts were formed, see United States court reorganization legislation.
| Key Dates |
|---|
| 1789 - The Judiciary Act of 1789. Congress divided the nation into 13 judicial districts, with each of these U.S. District Courts serving as the federal trial court for admiralty, maritime and some minor civil and criminal cases. |
| 1790s - Some states began to be divided into multiple judicial districts. |
| 1889 - A circuit court was established for every judicial district. |
| 1891 - Congress established a uniform salary for district court judges. |
| 1911 - The "Judicial Code of 1911" abolished the U.S. circuit courts, making the U.S. district courts the only general jurisdiction trial courts in the federal judicial system.[8] |
| 1968 - The judicial office of the federal magistrate was created.[4] |
See also
External links
- Official site of the United States Courts
- Federal Court Concepts, Georgia Tech
- United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire Official Website
Footnotes
- ↑ US Courts, "Federal Judgeships," accessed May 10, 2021 (archived)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 U.S. Courts, "United States District Court Federal Judiciary Frequently Asked Questions," accessed May 10, 2021 (archived)
- ↑ United States District Courts, "District Courts," accessed May 10, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The 'Lectric Law Library, "Understanding the U.S. federal courts"
- ↑ US Courts, "Table X-1A—Other Judicial Business (September 30, 2018)," accessed July 24, 2019
- ↑ US Courts, "Table X-1A—Other Judicial Business (September 30, 2019)," accessed August 28, 2020
- ↑ US Courts, "Explanation of Selected Terms," accessed July 25, 2019
- ↑ Federal Judicial Center: The U.S. District Courts and the Federal Judiciary
