Who were the original federal district court judges in these thirteen districts?
The thirteen original federal district court judges were: Richard Law (District of Connecticut); David Sewall (District of Maine); John Lowell (District of Massachusetts); John Sullivan (District of New Hampshire); James Duane (District of New York); Gunning Bedford (District of Delaware); Harry Innes (District of Kentucky); William Paca (District of Maryland); David Brearley (District of New Jersey); Francis Hopkinson (District of Pennsylvania); Cyrus Griffin (District of Virginia); Nathaniel Pendleton (District of Georgia); and William Drayton (District of South Carolina).
What three additional federal district courts were created within two years of the Judiciary Act of 1789?
Congress added federal district courts in the states of North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Vermont. President George Washington nominated John Stokes for the District of North Carolina; Harry Marchant for the District of Rhode Island; and Nathaniel Chipman for the District of Vermont.
What part of the Judiciary Act of 1789 gives the Supreme Court the power to review state laws?
Section 25 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 provides that the U.S. Supreme Court can review state laws to determine whether they comport with the Constitution. The section reads that where “the validity” of a state law is questioned “on the ground of being repugnant to the constitution, treaties or laws of the United States,” the U.S. Supreme Court has jurisdiction. This section originally caused great controversy, as many believed that the rights of the states were being invaded by the federal government and its courts.
What was circuit duty?
The Judiciary Act of 1789 created 13 lower federal courts called district courts. These district courts were divided into three circuits—the Eastern, the Middle, and the Southern. The circuit courts were composed of a district court judge and two justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. “Circuit duty,” or “riding circuit,” meant that U.S. Supreme Court justices had to travel across the country to hear cases across the country. An early U.S. Supreme Court justice, Thomas Johnson of Maryland, resigned after a little more than a year because of the difficulties caused by traveling to different circuit courts. In 1793, Congress passed a law that required circuit courts to consist of only one U.S. Supreme Court justice. Supreme Court justices “rode circuit” until 1891.
Section 25 of the Judiciary Act of 1789
“And be it further enacted, That a final judgment or decree in any suit, in the highest court of law or equity of a State in which a decision in the suit could be had, where is drawn in question the validity of a treaty or statute of, or an authority exercised under the United States, and the decision is against their validity; or where is drawn in question the validity of a statute of, or an authority exercised under any State, on the ground of their being repugnant to the constitution, treaties or laws of the United States, and the decision is in favour of such their validity, or where is drawn in question the construction of any clause of the constitution, or of a treaty, or statute of, or commission held under the United States, and the decision is against the title, right, privilege or exemption specially set up or claimed by either party, under such clause of the said Constitution, treaty, statute or commission, may be re-examined and reversed or affirmed in the Supreme Court of the United States upon a writ of error….”
When did Congress create separate judges for the circuit courts?
Congress established sixteen judgeships in six circuit courts in the Judiciary Act of 1801. The first five circuits would receive three judges each, while a single judge would man the Sixth Circuit. The outgoing administration of Federalist president John Adams wanted to strengthen the federal judicial system, particularly before the Democratic-Republican administration of incoming president Thomas Jefferson and a new Congress dominated by Jefferson’s party took office. The Democratic-Republicans repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801 in the Judiciary Act of 1802. This new law kept the structure of the six circuits but abolished the separate judgeships.
Which federal judges lost their jobs because of the Judiciary Act of 1802?
The Judiciary Act of 1802 abolished the new judgeships created by the Judiciary Act of 1801. The following judges lost their jobs: First Circuit: Benjamin Bourne and Jeremiah Smith; Second Circuit: Egbert Benson, Samuel Hitchcock, and Oliver Wolcott; Third Circuit: Richard Bassett, William Griffith, and William Tilghman; Fourth Circuit: Philip Barton Key, Charles Magill, and George Keith Taylor; Fifth Circuit: Joseph Clay, Dominic Augustin Hall, and Edward Harris; and Sixth Circuit: William McClung.
What law created the U.S. Courts of Appeals that exists today?
Congress created nine circuit courts of appeals by the Judiciary Act of 1891, also called the Evarts Act, named after U.S. senator William Evarts of New York. These new circuit court of appeals featured three judges each. A court of appeals for the D.C. Circuit was added in 1893; a court of appeals for the Tenth Circuit was added in 1929; and the Eleventh Circuit was added in 1980 by dividing the existing Fifth Circuit into two parts. In 1982, the Court created the Federal Circuit, which hears specialized appeals in patent and civil personnel cases among others. The Evarts Act essentially established the basic model for the modern-day federal judicial system.
William Maxwell Evarts, best known for serving as President Andrew Johnson’s counsel during his impeachment proceedings. He also was a U.S. senator and served in the Abraham Lincoln and Rutherford B. Hayes administrations. Brady-Handy Photograph Collection/Library of Congress.
Who was William Evarts?
William Maxwell Evarts was one of the nation’s leading lawyers. He also served in the U.S. Senate and sponsored the Judiciary Act of 1891. Evarts served as counsel for then-President Andrew Johnson during his impeachment proceedings. He also served as U.S. attorney for President Abraham Lincoln and as secretary of state for President Rutherford B. Hayes.
How does the system created by the Founding Fathers compare with the current federal court system?
The Judiciary Act of 1789 created the same three-tiered court system of federal district courts, federal circuits, and U.S. Supreme Court that exists today. The Evarts Act modernized the system by actually placing new judges on the circuit court appellate level, as opposed to staffing the circuit courts with district judges and U.S. Supreme Court justices. Now, there are ninety-four federal district courts, thirteen federal circuit courts of appeals, and one U.S. Supreme Court composed of nine justices. One major difference in the current system from the 1789 system is that now there are separate judges on the federal circuit courts of appeals. Another major difference is that the circuit courts of appeals are appellate courts; they no longer function as trial courts.
How many judges on the Court of Appeals hear individual cases?
Most cases that reach the federal appeals courts are heard by panels of three judges. Sometimes the panel consists of three federal appeals court judges and sometimes it is composed of two federal appeals court judges and a district court judge within that circuit.
The Current Federal Appeals Courts
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