Judicial Conference of the United States

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The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial courts in the United States. The Conference derives its authority from 28 U.S.C. § 331, which states that it is headed by the Chief Justice of the United States and consists of the Chief Justice, the chief judge of each court of appeals federal regional circuit, a district court judge from various federal judicial districts, and the chief judge of the United States Court of International Trade.[1]

History[]

Responding to a backlog of cases in the federal courts, in 1922 Congress enacted a new form of court administration that advanced the institutionalization of an independent judiciary.[2] The establishment of an annual Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, later to be known as the Judicial Conference of the United States, culminated more than a decade of public debate on the reform of judicial administration. The Conference of Senior Circuit Judges provided the first formal mechanism by which members of the federal judiciary might develop national administrative policies, reassign judges temporarily, and recommend legislation.

Chief Justice Taft led a public campaign for federal judicial reform

Chief Justice William Howard Taft, appointed to the Supreme Court in 1921, had led a public campaign for federal judicial reform since leaving the White House in 1913. Taft proposed the appointment of at-large judges, what he called a "flying squadron," that could be assigned temporarily to congested courts. In Taft's plan, a conference of judges would serve primarily to assess the caseload of the lower courts and assign the at-large judges to courts in need. Taft, supported by a group of federal judges and legal scholars, hoped that the establishment of a more efficient federal judiciary would deflect the efforts of Senator George W. Norris and others who advocated an end to life tenure on the federal bench and the restriction of the lower federal courts' jurisdiction.

By the time Taft became Chief Justice, the increased caseload resulting from World War I and the enforcement of Prohibition had contributed to broad support for reform of the federal judiciary. Assuming a role as leader of the judiciary as well as the Supreme Court, Taft joined with Attorney General Harry M. Daugherty and appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to urge legislation. A large majority in Congress agreed with the need for reform, but both the Senate and the House of Representatives insisted on revising Taft's proposals so that they conformed more closely to the traditions of the federal judiciary.

Congress established an annual conference of the Chief Justice of the United States (or the senior associate justice if the Chief is unable), and the senior circuit judge (now called the chief judge) from each judicial circuit and charged the conference with a general mandate to advise on the administrative needs of the federal courts. The act required the senior judge in each district to prepare an annual report of the business of the district's court. The conference would use these reports to prepare suggestions for the temporary transfer of judges, pending the approval of all courts involved. This expansion of the authority to transfer judges fell far short of Taft's concept of a permanent corps of at-large judges. Congress established 24 temporary judgeships, but adhered to the principle of fixed residency for district judges. Congress also declined to make the attorney general a member of the conference, although the act permitted the Chief Justice to request the attorney general to report on the business of the courts. Even without a formal relationship with Congress or the Department of Justice (which then administered the federal courts), the conference offered the judiciary a means of communicating its administrative needs.

The conference was renamed the Judicial Conference of the United States in 1948.[2] In 1956, Congress provided for the inclusion of the chief judge of the Court of Claims.[3] At that time, the judges of the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) declined to include a representative on the conference. The size of the conference nearly doubled following an act of 1957 that provided for the appellate and district judges in each circuit to elect a district judge to represent the circuit on the conference for a term of three years. In 1961 the chief judge of the CCPA began serving on the conference.[3] The chief judges of these Court of Claims and the CCPA served on the conference until 1982 when their courts merged to become the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.[3] In 1990, Congress provided for the inclusion of the chief judge of the United States Court of International Trade.[3] In 1996, Congress expanded the district judge term up to five years and allowed senior district judges to serve.[3]

Present tasks[]

Five standing Advisory Committees of the Judicial Conference have been established, and are charged, respectively, with drafting proposed amendments to the:

Members of the Advisory Committees include judges, representatives from the Department of Justice, law professors, and practicing attorneys. The Advisory Committees propose rules, subject them to public comment, and then submit them to the , which in turn submits them to the Judicial Conference, which recommends them to the Supreme Court for approval. Explanatory notes of the drafting Advisory Committee are published along with the final adopted rules, and are frequently used as an authority on the interpretation of the rules.

Other active policy areas concern the operation of CM/ECF, the Case Management/Electronic Case Files system, and PACER, the electronic public access service for United States federal court documents.

On very rare occasions, the Conference has authorized investigations of Federal Judges accused of criminal malfeasance. Those deemed guilty have been referred to the House Judiciary committee for impeachment. This has happened three times during the 21st century.

Administrative Office of the United States Courts[]

Main article: Administrative Office of the United States Courts

The Administrative Office of the United States Courts (AO) is the administrative agency of the United States federal court system. The AO is the central support entity for the federal judicial branch. It provides a wide range of administrative, legal, financial, management, program, and information technology services to the federal courts. It was established in 1939.

The AO is directly supervised by the Judicial Conference, and implements and executes Judicial Conference policies, as well as applicable federal statutes and regulations. The AO facilitates communications within the judiciary and with Congress, the executive branch, and the public on behalf of the judiciary.

Judicial councils[]

Judicial councils are panels of each federal judicial circuit that are charged with making "necessary and appropriate orders for the effective and expeditious administration of justice" within their circuits.[4][5] Among their responsibilities is judicial discipline, the formulation of circuit policy, the implementation of policy directives received from the Judicial Conference, and the annual submission of a report to the Administrative Office on the number and nature of orders entered during the year that relate to judicial misconduct.[6][5] Each judicial circuit consists of the chief judge of the circuit and an equal number of circuit judges and district judges of the circuit.[7]

Lists of members[]

Current members[]

Membership as of May 2021[8]
dagger denotes presiding officer
Name Title Court
John Roberts dagger Chief Justice Supreme Court
Jeffrey R. Howard Chief Judge First Circuit
Gustavo Gelpí Chief Judge District of Puerto Rico
Debra Ann Livingston Chief Judge Second Circuit
Stefan R. Underhill Chief Judge District of Connecticut
D. Brooks Smith Chief Judge Third Circuit
Freda L. Wolfson Chief Judge District of New Jersey
Roger Gregory Chief Judge Fourth Circuit
John P. Bailey Judge Northern District of West Virginia
Priscilla Owen Chief Judge Fifth Circuit
S. Maurice Hicks Jr. Chief Judge Western District of Louisiana
Jeffrey Sutton Chief Judge Sixth Circuit
Sara Elizabeth Lioi Judge Northern District of Ohio
Diane S. Sykes Chief Judge Seventh Circuit
Rebecca R. Pallmeyer Chief Judge Northern District of Illinois
Lavenski Smith Chief Judge Eighth Circuit
John R. Tunheim Judge District of Minnesota
Sidney R. Thomas Chief Judge Ninth Circuit
Rosanna M. Peterson Judge Eastern District of Washington
Timothy Tymkovich Chief Judge Tenth Circuit
Claire Eagan Judge Northern District of Oklahoma
William H. Pryor Jr. Chief Judge Eleventh Circuit
L. Scott Coogler Judge Northern District of Alabama
Sri Srinivasan Chief Judge District of Columbia Circuit
Beryl A. Howell Chief Judge District of Columbia
Kimberly A. Moore Chief Judge Federal Circuit
Mark A. Barnett Chief Judge Court of International Trade
Ex officio members:
Roslynn R. Mauskopf, Conference Secretary, Director Administrative Office of the United States Courts
Nannette A. Baker, Magistrate Judge Observer, Eastern District of Missouri
Jeffery P. Hopkins, Bankruptcy Judge Observer, Southern District of Ohio

All members[]

The following list of Judicial Conference service is organized by the circuits and courts represented. It was compiled largely from the Reports of the Proceedings of the Judicial Conference and is complete through the most recent meeting of the conference. The list contains the names of those judges who were members of the conference, but not those who may occasionally have attended in their absence. District Judges are identified by the district in which they served.[9]

Supreme Court of the United States

William Howard Taft, 1922–1929
Charles Evans Hughes, 1929–1941
Harlan Fiske Stone, 1941–1945
Frederick Moore Vinson, 1946–1953
Hugo Lafayette Black, 1953
Earl Warren, 1954–1969
Warren E. Burger, 1969–1986
William Rehnquist, 1987–2005
John Paul Stevens, 2005
John Roberts, 2006–present
United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
First Circuit District Judges
  • George Clinton Sweeney (D. Mass.), 1958–1961
  • Francis Ford (D. Mass.), 1961–1967
  • Edward T. Gignoux (D. Me.), 1967–1973
  • Andrew Caffrey (D. Mass.), 1973–1979
  • Raymond J. Pettine (D.R.I.), 1979–1982
  • W. Arthur Garrity Jr. (D. Mass.), 1982–1985
  • Juan M. Perez-Gimenez (D.P.R.), 1985–1988
  • Frank H. Freedman (D. Mass.), 1988–1991
  • Francis J. Boyle (D.R.I.), 1991–1994
  • Joseph L. Tauro (D. Mass.), 1995–1997
  • Joseph A. DiClerico Jr. (D.N.H.), 1998–2000
  • D. Brock Hornby (D. Me.), 2000–2003
  • Hector M. Laffitte (D.P.R.), 2003–2006
  • Ernest C. Torres (D.R.I.), 2007–2009
  • Mary M. Lisi (D.R.I.), 2009
  • Mark L. Wolf (D. Mass.), 2009–2012
  • Paul Barbadoro (D.N.H.), 2012–2017
  • Nancy Torresen (D. Me.), 2017–2021
  • Gustavo Gelpí (D.P.R.), 2021–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • Henry Wade Rogers, 1922–1925
  • Charles Merrill Hough, 1926
  • Martin T. Manton, 1926–1938
  • Learned Hand, 1939–1951
  • Thomas W. Swan, 1951–1953
  • Harrie B. Chase, 1953–1954
  • Charles E. Clark, 1954–1959
  • J. Edward Lumbard, 1960–1971
  • Henry J. Friendly, 1971–1973
  • Irving R. Kaufman, 1973–1980
  • Wilfred Feinberg, 1980–1988
  • James L. Oakes, 1989–1992
  • Thomas J. Meskill, 1992–1993
  • Jon O. Newman, 1993–1997
  • Ralph K. Winter Jr., 1997–2000
  • John M. Walker Jr., 2000–2006
  • Dennis G. Jacobs, 2006–2013
  • Robert A. Katzmann, 2013–2020
  • Debra Ann Livingston, 2020–present
Second Circuit District Judges
  • Edward Jordan Dimock (S.D.N.Y.), 1958–1959
  • Sylvester J. Ryan (S.D.N.Y.), 1959–1968
  • Sidney Sugarman (S.D.N.Y.), 1968–1971
  • David N. Edelstein (S.D.N.Y.), 1971–1974
  • Jacob Mishler (E.D.N.Y.), 1974–1977
  • T. Emmet Clarie (D. Conn.), 1977–1980
  • Lloyd F. MacMahon (S.D.N.Y.), 1980–1982
  • Constance B. Motley (S.D.N.Y.), 1982–1983
  • Jack B. Weinstein (E.D.N.Y.), 1983–1986
  • John T. Curtin (W.D.N.Y.), 1986–1989
  • Charles L. Brieant (S.D.N.Y.), 1989–1995
  • Peter Dorsey (D. Conn.), 1996–1998
  • Charles P. Sifton (E.D.N.Y)., 1998–2001
  • Frederick Scullin (N.D.N.Y.), 2001–2004
  • Michael B. Mukasey (S.D.N.Y.), 2005–2006
  • Kimba M. Wood (S.D.N.Y.), 2006–2007
  • William K. Sessions III (D. Vt.), 2007–2010
  • Raymond J. Dearie (E.D.N.Y.), 2010–2011
  • Carol Amon (E.D.N.Y.), 2011–2015
  • William M. Skretny (W.D.N.Y.), 2015–2016
  • Colleen McMahon (S.D.N.Y.), 2016–2019
  • Stefan R. Underhill (D. Conn.), 2019–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • Joseph Buffington, 1922–1937
  • John Warren Davis, 1938
  • John Biggs Jr., 1939–1965
  • Harry E. Kalodner, 1966
  • Austin Staley, 1966–1967
  • William H. Hastie, 1968–1971
  • Collins J. Seitz, 1971–1984
  • Ruggero J. Aldisert, 1984–1986
  • John J. Gibbons, 1987–1989
  • A. Leon Higginbotham, 1990
  • Dolores Sloviter, 1991–1997
  • Edward R. Becker, 1998–2003
  • Anthony J. Scirica, 2003–2010
  • Theodore A. McKee, 2010–2016
  • D. Brooks Smith, 2016–present
Third Circuit District Judges
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • Charles Albert Woods, 1922–1924
  • Edmund Waddill Jr., 1925–1930
  • John Johnston Parker, 1931–1957
  • Simon E. Sobeloff, 1958–1964
  • Clement F. Haynsworth, 1964–1981
  • Harrison L. Winter, 1981–1989
  • Sam J. Ervin III, 1989–1995
  • J. Harvie Wilkinson III, 1996–2003
  • William W. Wilkins, 2003–2007
  • Karen J. Williams, 2007–2009
  • William B. Traxler Jr., 2009–2016
  • Roger Gregory, 2016–present
Fourth Circuit District Judges
  • Roszel C. Thomsen (D. Md.), 1958–1964
  • Walter E. Hoffman (E.D. Va.), 1964–1970
  • Oren R. Lewis (E.D. Va.), 1970–1973
  • Charles E. Simons (D.S.C.), 1973–1979
  • Robert R. Merhige (E.D. Va.), 1980–1985
  • Frank Kaufman (D. Md.), 1985–1991
  • W. Earl Britt (E.D.N.C.), 1991–1997
  • Charles H. Haden II (S.D. W. Va.), 1998–2002
  • David C. Norton (D.S.C.), 2003–2007
  • James P. Jones (W.D. Va.), 2007–2011
  • Deborah K. Chasanow (D. Md.), 2011–2015
  • Robert J. Conrad, (W.D.N.C.), 2016–2021
  • John P. Bailey (N.D. W. Va.) 2021–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Fifth Circuit District Judges
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
Sixth Circuit District Judges
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
Seventh Circuit District Judges
  • William Joseph Campbell (N.D. Ill.), 1958–1961
  • Luther M. Swygert (N.D. Ind.), 1961
  • William E. Steckler (S.D. Ind.), 1962–1964
  • Kenneth P. Grubb (E.D. Wis), 1964–1965
  • Edwin A. Robson (N.D. Ill.), 1966–1969
  • Robert A. Grant (N.D. Ind.), 1969–1972
  • James Edward Doyle (W.D. Wis.), 1972–1975
  • James B. Parsons (N.D. Ill.), 1975–1978
  • S. Hugh Dillin (S.D. Ind.), 1979–1982
  • John W. Reynolds (E.D. Wis.), 1982–1985
  • Frank J. McGarr (N.D. Ill.), 1985–1987
  • Sarah Evans Barker (S.D. Ind.), 1988–1991
  • Barbara Crabb (W.D. Wis.), 1991–1994
  • Michael M. Mihm (C.D. Ill.), 1995–1997
  • Robert Lowell Miller Jr. (N.D. Ind.), 1998–2000
  • Marvin Aspen (N.D. Ill.), 2000–2003
  • J.P. Stadtmueller (E.D. Wis.), 2003–2006
  • Wayne Andersen (N.D. Ill.), 2006–2009
  • Richard L. Young (S.D. Ind.), 2009–2012
  • Rubén Castillo (N.D. Ill.), 2012–2015
  • Michael Joseph Reagan (S.D. Ill.), 2015–2018
  • Rebecca R. Pallmeyer (N.D. Ill.), 2019–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
Eighth Circuit District Judges
  • Gunnar Hans Nordbye (D. Minn.), 1958–1962
  • John Elvis Miller (W.D. Ark.), 1962–1963
  • Richard M. Duncan (E.D. & W.D. Mo.), 1963–1965
  • Roy W. Harper (E.D. & W.D. Mo.), 1965–1971
  • Oren Harris (E.D. & W.D. Ark.), 1971–1974
  • James H. Meredith (E.D. Mo.), 1974–1979
  • Albert G. Schatz (D. Neb.), 1979–1985
  • John F. Nangle (E.D. Mo.), 1985–1990
  • Donald E. O'Brien (N.D. & S.D. Iowa), 1991–1997
  • James M. Rosenbaum (D. Minn.), 1998–2005
  • Lawrence L. Piersol (D.S.D.), 2006–2009
  • Rodney W. Sippel (E.D. Mo.), 2009–2015
  • Karen E. Schreier (D.S.D.), 2015–2016
  • Linda R. Reade (N.D. Iowa), 2016–2021
  • John R. Tunheim (D. Minn.), 2021–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Ninth Circuit District Judges
  • William C. Mathes (S.D. Cal.), 1958–1960
  • William J. Lindberg (E.D. & W.D. Wash.), 1960–1963
  • Gus J. Solomon (D. Ore.), 1963–1965
  • Albert Wollenberg (N.D. Cal.), 1966–1969
  • Fred M. Taylor (D. Idaho), 1969–1972
  • Jesse W. Curtis (C.D. Cal.), 1972–1975
  • Thomas J. MacBride (E.D. Cal.), 1975–1978
  • Morell Sharp (W.D. Wash.), 1978–1980
  • Raymond Clyne McNichols (D. Idaho), 1980–1981
  • Manuel L. Real (C.D. Cal.), 1981–1984
  • Robert J. McNichols (E.D. Wash.), 1984–1987
  • Robert F. Peckham (N.D. Cal.), 1987–1990
  • William D. Browning (D. Ariz.), 1990–1993
  • William Matthew Byrne Jr. (C.D. Cal.), 1993–1996
  • Lloyd D. George (D. Nev.), 1997–1999
  • Judith N. Keep (S.D. Cal.), 1999–2003
  • David Alan Ezra (D. Haw.), 2003–2005
  • Charles R. Breyer (N.D. Cal.), 2006–2010
  • Robert S. Lasnik (W.D. Wash.), 2010–2015
  • Claudia Ann Wilken (N.D. Cal.), 2015–2019
  • Rosanna M. Peterson (E.D. Wash), 2019–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
  • Robert E. Lewis, 1929–1940
  • Orie Leon Phillips, 1940–1955
  • Sam Gilbert Bratton, 1956–1959
  • Alfred P. Murrah, 1959–1970
  • David T. Lewis, 1970–1977
  • Oliver Seth, 1978–1984
  • William Judson Holloway Jr., 1984–1991
  • Monroe McKay, 1991–1993
  • Stephanie K. Seymour, 1994–2000
  • Deanell R. Tacha, 2001–2007
  • Robert H. Henry, 2008–2010
  • Mary Beck Briscoe, 2010–2015
  • Timothy Tymkovich, 2015–present
Tenth Circuit District Judges
  • Eugene Rice (E.D. Okla.), 1958
  • Royce H. Savage (N.D. Okla.), 1958–1961
  • Ewing Thomas Kerr (D. Wyo.), 1962–1964
  • Alfred A. Arraj (D. Colo.), 1964–1967
  • Arthur Jehu Stanley Jr. (D. Kan.), 1967–1970
  • Olin Hatfield Chilson (D. Colo.), 1970–1973
  • Frederick A. Daugherty (E.D., N.D., & W.D. Okla.), 1973–1976
  • Wesley E. Brown (D. Kan.), 1976–1979
  • Howard C. Bratton (D.N.M.), 1979–1982
  • Luther B. Eubanks (W.D. Okla.), 1982–1985
  • Sherman G. Finesilver (D. Colo.), 1985–1988
  • Earl E. O'Connor (D. Kan.), 1988–1991
  • Richard P. Matsch (D. Colo.), 1991–1994
  • Clarence A. Brimmer (D. Wyo.), 1994–1997
  • Ralph G. Thompson (W.D. Okla.), 1998–2000
  • Frank Howell Seay (E.D. Okla.), 2000–2003
  • David L. Russell (W.D. Okla.), 2003–2006
  • Alan B. Johnson (D. Wyo.), 2006–2009
  • Robin J. Cauthron (W.D. Okla.), 2009–2012
  • Dee Benson (D. Utah), 2012–2015
  • Martha Vázquez (D.N.M.), 2015–2019
  • Claire Eagan (N.D. Okla.), 2019–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
Eleventh Circuit District Judges
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
  • Duncan Lawrence Groner, 1938–1947
  • Harold Montelle Stephens, 1948–1955
  • Henry White Edgerton, 1955–1958
  • E. Barrett Prettyman, 1959–1960
  • Wilbur Kingsbury Miller, 1961–1962
  • David L. Bazelon, 1963–1977
  • J. Skelly Wright, 1978–1980
  • Carl McGowan, 1981
  • Spottswood W. Robinson III, 1981–1986
  • Patricia M. Wald, 1986–1990
  • Abner Mikva, 1991–1994
  • Harry T. Edwards, 1994–2001
  • Douglas H. Ginsburg, 2001–2008
  • David B. Sentelle, 2008–2013
  • Merrick B. Garland, 2013–2020
  • Sri Srinivasan, 2020–present
D.C. Circuit District Judges
  • Bolitha Laws (D.D.C.), 1958
  • David Andrew Pine (D.D.C.), 1959–1961
  • Matthew F. McGuire (D.D.C.), 1961–1967
  • Edward M. Curran (D.D.C.), 1968–1971
  • John J. Sirica (D.D.C.), 1971–1974
  • George L. Hart (D.D.C.), 1974–1975
  • William Blakely Jones (D.D.C.), 1975–1977
  • William B. Bryant (D.D.C.), 1977–1981
  • John Lewis Smith (D.D.C.), 1981–1982
  • Aubrey E. Robinson Jr. (D.D.C.), 1982–1992
  • John Garrett Penn (D.D.C.), 1992–1997
  • Norma Holloway Johnson (D.D.C.), 1997–2001
  • Thomas F. Hogan (D.D.C.), 2001–2008
  • Royce C. Lamberth (D.D.C.), 2008–2013
  • Richard W. Roberts (D.D.C.), 2013–2016
  • Beryl A. Howell (D.D.C.), 2016–present
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
United States Court of Federal Claims

(prior to merger of the appellate division into the Federal Circuit)

  • Marvin Jones, 1956–1964
  • Wilson Cowen, 1964–1976
  • Oscar H. Davis, 1977–1978
  • Daniel M. Friedman, 1978–1982
United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals

(prior to merger into the Federal Circuit)

United States Court of International Trade

See also[]

  • Judicial Council of California

References[]

  1. ^ United States Courts page on Judicial Conference membership.[full citation needed]
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Federal Judicial Center, Judicial Conference of the United States, 1922–.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Federal Judicial Center, Members of the Judicial Conference of the United States (formerly the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges).
  4. ^ 28 U.S.C. § 332
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Judicial Discipline Process: An Overview (PDF), Congressional Research Service, retrieved 14 August 2014
  6. ^ 28 U.S.C. § 332(g)
  7. ^ 28 U.S.C. § 332(a)(1)
  8. ^ "Judicial Conference of the United States" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Judicial Conference of the United States. May 2021. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
  9. ^ Material in this section is transcribed from the corresponding page on the website of the Federal Judicial Center, a publication of the United States federal government in the public domain.

External links[]

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