Learn more about the courts of appeals. Bankruptcy Appellate Panels BAPs are 3-judge panels authorized to hear appeals of bankruptcy court decisions.
These panels are a unit of the federal courts of appeals, and must be established by that circuit. District Courts. District courts resolve disputes by determining the facts and applying legal principles to decide who is right.
Trial courts include the district judge who tries the case and a jury that decides the case. Magistrate judges assist district judges in preparing cases for trial. They may also conduct trials in misdemeanor cases. There is at least one district court in each state, and the District of Columbia. Each district includes a U. Four territories of the United States have U. There are also two special trial courts. The Court of International Trade addresses cases involving international trade and customs laws.
The U. Court of Federal Claims deals with most claims for money damages against the U. Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases involving personal, business, or farm bankruptcy. This means a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in state court. Data on sitting judges include judges serving in senior status—a form of semiretirement—who can still hear cases.
Datasets for active judges, on the other hand, do not include senior-status judges and only reflect judges who serve on the courts full time.
For this report, the authors have chosen to break out statistics based on race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. Data included in this report reflect federal judges serving on the lower federal courts as of November 18, Due to the rate at which federal judges are being appointed, combined with the regularity of judges electing senior status or vacating the bench, some individual data points may have altered between November and date of publication and are not reflected herein.
Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. And in February , Judge Deborah A. Courts of Appeals, people of color make up just 20 percent of all sitting judges and 27 percent of active judges. In all, African Americans comprise 10 percent of sitting judges and 13 percent of active judges, while Hispanic judges make up about 7 percent and 9 percent of sitting and active judges, respectively.
Asian Americans comprise an even smaller proportion of the lower federal courts: Only 2. American Indian judges and those belonging to more than one race or ethnicity each make up about 1 percent or less of the lower federal judiciary.
There are also significant gender disparities on the lower federal courts. For example, female judges make up just 27 percent of all lower federal court sitting judges and 34 percent of active judges.
For their part, women of color comprise just 7 percent of all sitting judges and 10 percent of all active judges serving on the lower federal courts. African American women make up only about 3 percent of all sitting judges and 5 percent of all active district and circuit judges. Hispanic women, on the other hand, comprise between 2 percent and 4 percent of the lower federal courts, while Asian American women make up only 1 percent to 2 percent of the lower federal bench.
Native American women and women belonging to more than one race or ethnicity make up fewer than 1 percent each of all district and circuit judges. Finally, judges who self-identify as LGBTQ also comprise an exceptionally small proportion of judges on the lower courts: Just 0.
Courts of Appeals and U. The purpose of this report is to help lawmakers and advocates identify federal jurisdictions where representation of judges belonging to historically underrepresented groups is most sorely lacking. Although women, people of color, and LGBTQ judges are underrepresented in nearly every federal jurisdiction across the country, some jurisdictions are worse off than others. The demographic data presented in this report reflect federal judges appointed to Article III courts as defined by the U.
The authors, however, wish to stress that there exists within these broad categories a wide variety of different communities who face different types of discrimination and needs. This report reflects the demographic composition of the lower Article III federal courts as of November 18, More specifically, the data contained in this report reflect sitting and active federal judges who were commissioned on or before that date. Some data may have changed as of the date of publication, specifically as related to sitting judges who vacate the bench more frequently than active judges.
For Part 2 of this report, the authors include data on judges serving actively on the 91 Article III district courts. To determine the demographic composition of circuit populations, the authors relied primarily on data derived from the U. Census Bureau.
Note that data contained within this section reflect the compositions of U. Courts of Appeals as of November 18, Specific data points may have altered between that date and the date of publication. Courts of Appeals represent the courts of last resort for the vast majority of cases filed in the federal system. Judges sitting on circuit courts wield significant power over not only the outcomes of important individual cases but also the development of U.
More than 60, cases were filed in U. Courts of Appeals in Unfortunately, despite their immense power, the circuit courts are largely homogenous in terms of gender, race, and sexual orientation. Overall, women comprise only about 26 percent of sitting circuit court judges and about In fact, female judges do not comprise a majority of any U.
The 8th Circuit offers a particularly stark example of the lack of female judges, as it has only one woman serving on its bench. Although people of color comprise roughly 40 percent of the U. On no circuit court do judges of color comprise more than 36 percent of the bench. The 7th Circuit has no judges of color at all.
Moreover, despite comprising S population, African Americans make up just 7. African American judges are entirely absent from two circuit courts. Furthermore, Asian Americans, who represent approximately 5. Worse still, five circuits have no actively serving Hispanic judges on the bench. There are no American Indian judges serving on federal circuit courts. Furthermore, according to the FJC, there are no circuit court judges who belong to two or more races or ethnicities.
Representation of women of color on circuit courts is even more dire. Women of color comprise only about 4 percent of sitting circuit court judges and about 6 percent of active circuit court judges. Comparatively, women of color comprise approximately 20 percent of the U.
Across the U. Courts of Appeals, there are just five African American women, only four of whom actively serve, and four Latina judges. And only two circuits—the 9th and D. In looking at the combined populations of these four states and Puerto Rico, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 42 percent and According to the U. In comparison, the 1st Circuit Court comprises judges who are overwhelmingly white and male. For example, whites comprise 82 percent of sitting judges and 67 percent of active judges on that circuit court.
There is only one African American judge and one Hispanic judge on the court—each comprising 9 percent of sitting judges and 17 percent of active judges. There are no Asian American or American Indian judges on the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. And despite making up a majority of the general population, there are only two female judges on the court, comprising just 18 percent of all sitting judges and 33 percent of active judges on that court.
There is only one woman of color—Judge Ojetta R. Thompson, who is African American—on the 1st Circuit. Disparities between the judges on the U. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit and the general populations of those four states and one territory lead to gaps in demographic representation.
For instance, among sitting judges on the 1st Circuit, there is a 24 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows to a 9 percentage-point gap. Again, the gap narrows—to approximately In looking at the combined populations of these three states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 42 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively. Census Bureau, African Americans make up approximately Comparatively speaking, the 2nd Circuit Court is largely white and male.
Whites comprise 77 percent of sitting judges and 69 percent of active judges on that circuit court. There is one Hispanic judge on the court, representing 4 percent and 8 percent of sitting and active judges, respectively, and two Asian American judges on the 2nd Circuit, making up about 8 percent of sitting judges and 15 percent of active judges on that court. There are no American Indian judges on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity.
Despite making up a majority of the general population, women make up just 19 percent of all sitting judges and 23 percent of active judges on the 2nd Circuit Court. For instance, among sitting judges on the 2nd Circuit, there is about a 19 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows to a 11 percentage-point gap. Again, the gap narrows slightly—to approximately 28 percentage points—if one examines active judges alone. Virgin Islands. In looking at the combined populations of these three states and the Virgin Islands, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 33 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively.
But this diversity is not reflected in the composition of the 3rd Circuit Court. Whites comprise 83 percent of sitting judges and 79 percent of active judges on that circuit court. There are only two African American judges on the court, comprising 8 percent of sitting judges and 14 percent of active judges.
There are no Asian American or American Indian judges on the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. And despite making up a majority of the general population, there are only five sitting female judges and two active female judges on the court, comprising just 21 percent of all sitting judges and 14 percent of active judges on that court, respectively. The fact that women on the 3rd Circuit Court make up an even smaller proportion of active judges compared with sitting judges is notable, since generally, gender diversity tends to be better among active judges, who are often younger and more recently appointed than sitting judges.
Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit and the general populations of those three states and one territory lead to gaps in demographic representation. Among sitting judges on the 3rd Circuit, there is a 16 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows slightly to a 12 percentage-point gap. In looking at active judges alone, the gap actually swells to a 37 percentage-point gap. In looking at the combined populations of these five states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 38 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively. Compared with this, the demographic makeup of the 4th Circuit Court is remarkedly nondiverse.
For example, whites comprise 83 percent of sitting judges and 80 percent of active judges on the 4th Circuit. The court includes only two African American judges—comprising 11 percent of sitting judges and 13 percent of active judges—and just one Hispanic judge. There are no Asian American or American Indian judges on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. And despite making up a majority of the general population, there are just five female judges on the court, comprising 28 percent of all sitting judges and 33 percent of active judges on the bench.
For instance, among sitting judges on the 4th Circuit, there is a 21 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows slightly to a 18 percentage-point gap. Again, the gap narrows slightly—to approximately 18 percentage points—if one examines active judges alone. In looking at the combined populations of these three states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 55 percent and Compared with its the general population, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals is the least racially and ethnically diverse circuit court in the country.
For instance, despite making up just 45 percent of the general population, white judges comprise 85 percent of all sitting judges and 81 percent of all active judges on the 5th Circuit Court. Just two circuit judges are African Americans, comprising 8 percent and Furthermore, the 5th Circuit has just one Asian American judge and one sitting Hispanic judge.
There are no American Indian judges serving on the 5th Circuit, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. And despite making up a majority of the general population, female judges comprise only 23 percent of sitting judges and 25 percent of active judges on the 5th Circuit Court.
For instance, among sitting judges on the 5th Circuit, there is a 40 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows slightly to a 36 percentage-point gap. In examining gender disparities, there is a Again, the gap narrows slightly—to approximately In looking at the combined populations of these four states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 23 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively. The 6th Circuit Court is unique in that, compared with their respective share of the general population, African Americans are marginally overrepresented among active judges.
The three African American judges on the bench represent 10 percent and 19 percent of sitting and active judges, respectively. However, there are no Hispanic or American Indian judges serving on the 6th Circuit, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. Donald, who is African American.
For instance, among sitting judges on the 6th Circuit, there is a 6 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court. However, in looking only at active judges, people of color are slightly overrepresented on the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals by about 8 percentage points compared with their share of the general population.
The gap narrows to approximately In looking at the combined populations of these three states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 30 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively.
Among all the federal circuit courts, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals is unique in that all of its judges are white. There are no sitting or active judges of color on the 7th Circuit bench. Moreover, despite making up a majority of the population, female judges make up just 36 percent of sitting judges and These disparities between the judges on the U.
For instance, there is a 30 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with judges of color serving on the 7th Circuit Court. This gap holds true regardless of whether one looks at sitting or active judges on the bench.
The gap narrows to approximately 5. In looking at the combined populations of these seven states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 21 percent and For instance, whites comprise 94 percent of sitting judges and 91 percent of active judges on the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Smith, who is an African American man. There are no Asian American, Hispanic, or American Indian judges presiding over the 8th Circuit Court, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. Regarding gender disparities, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals stands out as an extreme example. Although women make up a majority of the general population, the 8th Circuit has only one female judge, comprising just 6 percent of all sitting judges and 9 percent of active judges on that court.
For instance, among sitting judges on the 8th Circuit, there is a 15 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court. In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows slightly to an 12 percentage-point gap. The gaps are even more startling regarding gender disparities. Again, the gap narrows slightly—to approximately 41 percentage points—if one examines active judges alone.
In looking at the combined populations of these nine states and Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 53 percent and Unlike its highly diverse general population, judges on the 9th Circuit are surprisingly homogenous in terms of race and ethnicity and gender. Whites, for instance, comprise Hispanic judges make up 13 percent of sitting judges and 15 percent of active judges on the bench.
There are no American Indian judges serving on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. And although they make up a majority of the general population, women represent 32 percent of sitting judges and 48 percent of active judges on the 9th Circuit.
One judge is an African American woman, while another is Asian American. Three judges on the 9th Circuit are Latinas. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and the general populations of those nine states and two territories lead to gaps in demographic representation. For instance, among sitting judges on the 9th Circuit, there is a In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows to roughly 23 percentage points. Again, the gap narrows to approximately 2 percentage points if one examines active judges alone.
In looking at the combined populations of these six states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 33 percent and 50 percent of the general population, respectively. In comparison, the 10th Circuit Court itself comprises judges who are overwhelmingly white: Whites comprise 91 percent of sitting judges and 83 percent of active judges on the court.
The 10th Circuit Court includes only one African American judge and one Hispanic judge, each comprising about 4.
There are no Asian American or American Indian judges on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. For instance, among sitting judges on the 10th Circuit, there is a 24 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the court. In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows slightly to about 16 percentage points. Again, the gap narrows slightly—to approximately 17 percentage points—if one examines active judges alone.
In looking at the combined populations of these three states, one finds that people of color and women comprise approximately 45 percent and 51 percent of the general population, respectively.
Census Bureau, African Americans make up roughly The 11th Circuit Court comprises judges who are mostly white: Whites make up 90 percent of sitting judges and 80 percent of active judges on that court. The court includes just one African American judge and one Hispanic judge. There are no Asian American or American Indian judges on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity.
Among federal circuit courts, the 11th Circuit has the largest proportion of female judges. Disparities between the U. For instance, among sitting judges on the 11th Circuit, there is a 35 percentage-point gap between the proportion of people of color within the general population compared with those serving on the circuit court.
In looking only at active judges, the gap narrows somewhat to about 25 percentage points. The gap narrows to just 1 percentage point if one examines active judges alone. The D. Circuit handles cases involving federal agencies and disputes between branches of the federal government. Circuit Court is majority white and male. Whites comprise 72 percent of sitting judges or 64 percent of active judges on that court.
And although there are two Asian American judges on the court, comprising 11 percent of sitting judges and 18 percent of active judges on the bench, there are no Hispanic or American Indian judges presiding over the D.
Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity. Regarding gender, five of the D. Two active judges on the D. The Federal Circuit Court has nationwide jurisdiction and primarily handles cases concerning U.
The Federal Circuit comprises judges who are overwhelmingly white and male. Eighty-three percent of sitting judges, and 75 percent of active judges, on the Federal Circuit court are white. There are no African American or American Indian judges serving on the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, nor are there any judges belonging to more than one race or ethnicity.
Of the female judges serving on the court, just one is a woman of color: Judge Kara Farnandez Stoll, who is Latina. District Courts as of November 18, The previous section examined judges belonging to different demographic groups across the 12 regional courts appeals and Federal circuit. This section focuses on the demographic compositions of the U. District Courts. District Courts handle more cases than nearly any other division of the federal judiciary.
Unfortunately, as is typical across the entire federal judiciary, there are exceptionally few women, people and women of color, and judges who self-identify as LGBTQ on the U.
For instance, regarding gender disparities, women comprise only about 27 percent of all sitting district court judges and about 33 percent of active judges. Additionally, when it comes to female representation on the district courts:. People of color comprise just 21 percent of sitting or 28 percent of active judges on the district courts. More specifically, African Americans make up just 11 percent of all sitting district court judges and approximately Asian American judges make up just 2 percent of all sitting district court judges and 3 percent of all active judges on U.
And despite making up an increasingly large share of the U. There are just two American Indian district court judges, only one of whom is active. Furthermore, district court judges who belong to two or more races or ethnicities account for only about 1 percent of all sitting and active judges on district benches.
In all, more than one-third of all federal district courts comprise entirely white judges and have no judges of color serving on them. Among sitting judges, judges of color make up at least half of the bench on just four of all district courts, or 4 percent. Other startling statistics include the following:. Representation of women of color on district courts is similarly poor. Women of color comprise only about 7. In fact, the majority—or 60 percent—of all district courts have no women of color sitting or actively serving on them at all.
Finally, although judges who self-identify as LGBTQ make up a slightly larger proportion of district court judges compared with their representation on circuit courts, they are still underrepresented compared with their proportion of the general population. What kind of justice system would you put into place? What pieces would make up your system? Who would make the laws? Who would interpret them? Who would enforce them? Using what you know of the governmental systems where you live, what would you keep and what would you change about the systems you're most familiar with?
Try your hand at writing a simple, basic constitution that would set forth the pieces of your new justice system. Did you get it? Test your knowledge. Wonder Words judge supreme court chief associate resign retire government justice nominated federal appeal confirmed impeachment jurisdiction Constitution appellate Take the Wonder Word Challenge.
Join the Discussion. Larry Kearney Nov 24, Constitutionally, there are no requirements to be appointed. Dec 27, Savannah Oct 4, Emily May 10, May 14, The following paragraph from this Wonder helps explain what the judges on the Supreme Court do: "The Supreme Court is mainly an appellate court , which means that it decides whether lower courts made correct decisions about the law during trials or earlier appeals.
Peyton Oct 23, Oct 26, Hi Peyton! Check out Amanda's question just below yours. It's similar and a good one! Amanda Apr 26, How many judges in the Supreme Court? Not justices! Apr 27, SwagMaster Feb 1, Feb 3, Oct 27, Easy read on supreme court justice info. Clear, concise educational read. Word challenge was cool too. Will be back to the site. Jun 17, Apr 22, Hi, bob!
Thanks for visiting Wonderopolis! Apr 7, Renata May 10, Including the chief justice ,the Supreme Court has justices.
We're glad this Wonder was helpful, ronnie! Visit again soon! Thanks, ronnie! We're glad you're having fun exploring the site! Michael Mar 21, This is my first time on this site and it helped a lot!!!!! Mar 22, Kellie Jan 3, This is my first time going to your site and I love it. Jan 4, Angie Dec 9, Very informative. This is the first time I've viewed your website and it looks interesting and inviting.
However, you made a mistake by encouraging children to try out their skills of arguing on their family arguing for a later bedtime with their parents. Children do not have the wisdom that their parents do about what they need, about how to govern themselves.
Parents need to lovingly help their children obey. That example should be omitted. Dec 11,
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