| Federal Courts The United States Constitution establishes the judicial branch as one of the three separate and distinct branches of the federal government. The other two are the legislative and executive branches. The federal courts often are called the guardians of the Constitution because their rulings protect rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. Through fair and impartial judgments, the federal courts interpret and apply the law to resolve disputes. The courts do not make the laws. That is the responsibility of Congress. Nor do the courts have the power to enforce the laws. That is the role of the President and the many executive branch departments and agencies. The Founding Fathers of the United States of America considered an independent federal judiciary essential to ensure fairness and equal justice for all citizens of the United States. The Constitution promotes judicial independence in two major ways. First, federal judges are appointed for life, and they can be removed from office only through impeachment and conviction by Congress of "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." Second, the Constitution provides that the compensation of federal judges "shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office," which means that neither the President nor Congress can reduce the salary of a federal judge. These two protections help an independent judiciary to decide cases free from popular passions and political influence United States District Court System
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the American federal court system. Within limits set by Congress and the Constitution, the district courts have jurisdiction to hear nearly all categories of federal cases, including both civil and criminal matters. Every day hundreds of people across the nation are selected for jury duty and help decide some of these cases. There are 94 federal judicial districts, including at least one district in each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Three territories of the United States -- the Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands -- have district courts that hear federal cases, including bankruptcy cases. Bankruptcy courts are separate units of the district courts. Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases. This means that a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in a state court. There are two special trial courts that have nationwide jurisdiction over certain types of cases. 1. The Court of International Trade addresses cases involving international trade and customs issues. 2. The United States Court of Federal Claims has jurisdiction over most claims for money damages against the United States, disputes over federal contracts, unlawful "takings" of private property by the federal government, and a variety of other claims against the United States. District Courts Congress has divided the United States into a number of judicial circuits, each of which includes several District Courts and a Court of Appeals to decide appeals from cases decided in the district courts within the circuit. There are currently eleven numbered circuits, and one for the District of Columbia that decides appeals from the district court in Washington, D.C. There is also a United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which does not have any geographical circuit, but hears appeals from any District Court in cases relating to patents. It also decides appeals from the specialized trial courts in a few areas, including federal claims, international trade, and veterans' rights. The circuits, and the states and territories within their jurisdiction, are: D.C. Circuit (Washington)
District of Columbia 1st Circuit (Boston)
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island 2nd Circuit (New York)
Connecticut
New York
Vermont 3rd Circuit (Philadelphia)
Delaware
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
U.S. Virgin Islands 4th Circuit (Richmond)
Maryland
North Carolina
South Carolina
Virginia
West Virginia | 5th Circuit (New Orleans)
Louisiana
Mississippi
Texas 6th Circuit (Cincinnati)
Kentucky
Michigan
Ohio
Tennessee 7th Circuit (Chicago)
Illinois
Indiana
Wisconsin 8th Circuit (St. Louis)
Arkansas
Iowa
Minnesota
Missouri
Nebraska
North Dakota
South Dakota | 9th Circuit (San Francisco)
Alaska
Arizona
California
Guam
Hawaii
Idaho
Montana
Nevada
Northern Mariana Islands
Oregon
Washington 10th Circuit (Denver)
Colorado
Kansas
New Mexico
Oklahoma
Utah
Wyoming 11th Circuit (Atlanta)
Alabama
Florida
Georgia |
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