This article is about the pre-1912 system. For the current appellate courts, commonly referred to as circuit courts, see United States courts of appeals.
During the 100 years that the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court "rode circuit", many justices complained about the effort required.[2] Riding circuit took a great deal of time (about half of the year) and was both physically demanding and dangerous. However, "members of Congress held firm to the belief that circuit riding benefited the justices and the populace, and they turned a deaf ear to the corps of justices that desired to abolish the practice."[2]
The Judiciary Act of 1869 established a separate circuit court (and allowed the hiring of judges specifically to handle the cases) but the act required that Supreme Court justices had to ride circuit once every two years. However, this came to a final end in 1891 when the Circuit Courts of Appeals Act was passed.[2]
Although the federal judicial districts were grouped into circuits, the circuit courts convened separately in each district and were designated by the name of the district (for example, the "U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Massachusetts"), not by the name or number of the circuit. The designation of circuits served only for the purpose of designating the districts in which a particular Supreme Court Justice, and later a circuit judge, would sit on the circuit court. The circuit court districts were usually, but not always, the same as the districts established for the district courts.
Congress had borrowed the general idea of circuit courts from England, but at their creation, the new United States circuit courts were "a unique institution, whose composition and jurisdiction did not resemble any prior court in England or America."[1] Each circuit court was composed initially of two Supreme Court justices and the district judge of the district,[1] although in 1793 Congress provided that a quorum of one justice and one district judge could hold court. After 1802, only one justice was assigned to each circuit, and a quorum could consist of a single justice or judge. This "circuit riding" arrangement meant that the Supreme Court justices spent the majority of the year traveling to each district within their circuit to conduct trials, and spent far less time assembled at the capital to hear appeals. The burden of circuit riding was somewhat alleviated by the appointment of circuit judges under the Circuit Judges Act of 1869, but was not abolished until the creation of the intermediate courts of appeals in 1891.
In 1801, Congress attempted for the first time in its history to relieve the Supreme Court justices of this burden by enacting the Judiciary Act of 1801, commonly known as the Midnight Judges Act, but that proved to be highly controversial as the Act took effect with only 19 days remaining in John Adams's Federalist administration. Before the oppositional Democratic-Republican administration of Thomas Jefferson took power, Adams took advantage of the Act to nominate several new federal judges expected to support the Federalist agenda. Although Jefferson also nominated a few judges, the Act was repealed after only one year because Jefferson feared the judiciary would become too powerful.
The same act also created the United States Circuit Court of the District of Columbia, a "circuit court" for the District of Columbia. This court had the same original jurisdiction and powers as the United States circuit courts but, unlike those courts, it continued to have its own judges even after the repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801, and also exercised appellate jurisdiction over justices of the peace and other "local" courts of the District. The District of Columbia was not enumerated among the federal "circuits" at the time. This court was abolished in 1863.
Since each circuit court was initially staffed by sharing judges between the U.S. Supreme Court and each federal district court, the district court clerk usually acted as the circuit court clerk. This arrangement persisted for many years in most federal judicial districts, even after Congress authorized the appointment of circuit judges in 1869 and allowed such judges to appoint a clerk without the concurrence of the district court judge.[3]
Judgesedit
Although any district court judge could be authorized to act as a circuit judge, only fifty judges solely designated as circuit court judges were ever appointed. These can be broadly categorized into four groups:
Judges appointed pursuant to the Midnight Judges Act on or after February 20, 1801, and thereafter removed from office with the repeal of that Act on July 1, 1802.
Judges appointed to the D.C. Circuit, abolished on March 3, 1863
Judges appointed after 1869 pursuant to the Circuit Judges Act of 1869; those in office on June 16, 1891 were transferred to the newly created United States courts of appeals by operation of law, that is, without action on the part of the President.
One judge appointed to the California circuit, established in 1855 and abolished on March 3, 1863.
^ abBecause of the unique structure of the United States Circuit Court for the District of Columbia, the elevation of a sitting judge of the Court to chief judge of the Court is considered a separate appointment.
^ abcdWhite, G. Edward (2012). Law in American History, Volume 1: From the Colonial Years Through the Civil War. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. p. 197. ISBN9780190634940. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
^ abcGlick, Joshua (April 2003). "Comment: On the Road: The Supreme Court and the History of Circuit Riding". Cardozo Law Review.
^Messinger, I. Scott (2002). Order in the Courts: A History of the Federal Court Clerk's Office. Washington, D.C.: Federal Judicial Center. p. 18.
^After Midnight: The Circuit Judges and the Repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801.
^From John Adams to United States Senate, 21 February 1801.
^ abcdFrom John Adams to United States Senate, 18 February 1801.
^From John Adams to United States Senate, 25 February 1801.
^From John Adams to United States Senate, 26 February 1801.
^From John Adams to United States Senate, 28 February 1801.
External linksedit
Federal Judicial Center
February 15, 2024
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This article is about the pre 1912 system For the current appellate courts commonly referred to as circuit courts see United States courts of appeals The United States circuit courts were the intermediate level courts of the United States federal court system from 1789 until 1912 They were established by the Judiciary Act of 1789 1 and had trial court jurisdiction over civil suits of diversity jurisdiction and major federal crimes They also had appellate jurisdiction over the United States district courts 1 The Judiciary Act of 1891 26 Stat 826 also known as the Evarts Act transferred their appellate jurisdiction to the newly created United States circuit courts of appeals which are now known as the United States courts of appeals On January 1 1912 the effective date of the Judicial Code of 1911 the circuit courts were abolished with their remaining trial court jurisdiction transferred to the U S district courts During the 100 years that the Justices of the U S Supreme Court rode circuit many justices complained about the effort required 2 Riding circuit took a great deal of time about half of the year and was both physically demanding and dangerous However members of Congress held firm to the belief that circuit riding benefited the justices and the populace and they turned a deaf ear to the corps of justices that desired to abolish the practice 2 The Judiciary Act of 1869 established a separate circuit court and allowed the hiring of judges specifically to handle the cases but the act required that Supreme Court justices had to ride circuit once every two years However this came to a final end in 1891 when the Circuit Courts of Appeals Act was passed 2 Contents 1 Organization 2 Judges 2 1 Circuit court judges appointed pursuant to the Midnight Judges Act 2 2 Judges of the D C Circuit 2 3 Circuit court judges appointed pursuant to the 1869 Act 2 4 Circuit court judge of California 3 See also 4 Explanatory notes 5 References 6 External linksOrganization editAlthough the federal judicial districts were grouped into circuits the circuit courts convened separately in each district and were designated by the name of the district for example the U S Circuit Court for the District of Massachusetts not by the name or number of the circuit The designation of circuits served only for the purpose of designating the districts in which a particular Supreme Court Justice and later a circuit judge would sit on the circuit court The circuit court districts were usually but not always the same as the districts established for the district courts Congress had borrowed the general idea of circuit courts from England but at their creation the new United States circuit courts were a unique institution whose composition and jurisdiction did not resemble any prior court in England or America 1 Each circuit court was composed initially of two Supreme Court justices and the district judge of the district 1 although in 1793 Congress provided that a quorum of one justice and one district judge could hold court After 1802 only one justice was assigned to each circuit and a quorum could consist of a single justice or judge This circuit riding arrangement meant that the Supreme Court justices spent the majority of the year traveling to each district within their circuit to conduct trials and spent far less time assembled at the capital to hear appeals The burden of circuit riding was somewhat alleviated by the appointment of circuit judges under the Circuit Judges Act of 1869 but was not abolished until the creation of the intermediate courts of appeals in 1891 In 1801 Congress attempted for the first time in its history to relieve the Supreme Court justices of this burden by enacting the Judiciary Act of 1801 commonly known as the Midnight Judges Act but that proved to be highly controversial as the Act took effect with only 19 days remaining in John Adams s Federalist administration Before the oppositional Democratic Republican administration of Thomas Jefferson took power Adams took advantage of the Act to nominate several new federal judges expected to support the Federalist agenda Although Jefferson also nominated a few judges the Act was repealed after only one year because Jefferson feared the judiciary would become too powerful The same act also created the United States Circuit Court of the District of Columbia a circuit court for the District of Columbia This court had the same original jurisdiction and powers as the United States circuit courts but unlike those courts it continued to have its own judges even after the repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801 and also exercised appellate jurisdiction over justices of the peace and other local courts of the District The District of Columbia was not enumerated among the federal circuits at the time This court was abolished in 1863 Since each circuit court was initially staffed by sharing judges between the U S Supreme Court and each federal district court the district court clerk usually acted as the circuit court clerk This arrangement persisted for many years in most federal judicial districts even after Congress authorized the appointment of circuit judges in 1869 and allowed such judges to appoint a clerk without the concurrence of the district court judge 3 Judges editAlthough any district court judge could be authorized to act as a circuit judge only fifty judges solely designated as circuit court judges were ever appointed These can be broadly categorized into four groups Judges appointed pursuant to the Midnight Judges Act on or after February 20 1801 and thereafter removed from office with the repeal of that Act on July 1 1802 Judges appointed to the D C Circuit abolished on March 3 1863 Judges appointed after 1869 pursuant to the Circuit Judges Act of 1869 those in office on June 16 1891 were transferred to the newly created United States courts of appeals by operation of law that is without action on the part of the President One judge appointed to the California circuit established in 1855 and abolished on March 3 1863 Three circuit court judges Samuel M Blatchford David Josiah Brewer and William Burnham Woods were later appointed to the Supreme Court Circuit court judges appointed pursuant to the Midnight Judges Act edit Judge 4 Circuit Began service Ended service Appointed byRichard Bassett Third February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsThomas Bee Fifth Declined John Adams as chief judge 5 Egbert Benson Second February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John Adams as chief judge 6 Benjamin Bourne First February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsJoseph Clay Fifth Declined John AdamsWilliam Griffith Third February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsDominic Hall Fifth July 1 1801 Recess July 1 1802 Thomas JeffersonEdward Harris Fifth May 3 1802 July 1 1802 Thomas JeffersonSamuel Hitchcock Second February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsJared Ingersoll Third Declined John Adams as chief judge 6 Philip Key Fourth February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John Adams as chief judge 7 Charles Lee Fourth Declined John Adams as chief judge 6 John Lowell First February 20 1801 May 6 1802 John Adams as chief judge 6 Charles Magill Fourth March 3 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsWilliam McClung Sixth February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsHenry Potter Fifth May 9 1801 Recess April 7 1802 Thomas JeffersonJohn Sitgreaves Fifth Declined John AdamsJeremiah Smith First February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsGeorge Taylor Fourth February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsWilliam Tilghman Third March 3 1801 July 1 1802 John Adams as chief judge 8 Oliver Wolcott Second February 20 1801 July 1 1802 John AdamsJudges of the D C Circuit edit Judge Circuit Began service Ended service Appointed byWilliam Cranch D C February 28 1801 February 24 1806 John AdamsFebruary 24 1806 September 1 1855 Thomas Jefferson as chief judge note 1 Allen Duckett D C March 17 1806 July 19 1809 Thomas JeffersonJames Dunlop D C October 3 1845 Recess November 27 1855 James PolkNovember 27 1855 Recess March 3 1863 Franklin Pierce as chief judge note 1 Nicholas Fitzhugh D C November 25 1803 December 31 1814 Thomas JeffersonThomas Johnson D C Declined John Adams as chief judge 9 William Kilty D C March 23 1801 Recess January 27 1806 Thomas Jefferson as chief judge James Marshall D C March 3 1801 November 16 1803 John AdamsWilliam Merrick D C December 14 1855 March 3 1863 Franklin PierceJames Morsell D C January 11 1815 March 3 1863 James MadisonBuckner Thruston D C December 14 1809 August 30 1845 James MadisonCircuit court judges appointed pursuant to the 1869 Act edit Judge Circuit Began service Ended service Appointed byMarcus Acheson Third February 3 1891 June 16 1891 note 2 Benjamin HarrisonJohn Baxter Sixth December 13 1877 April 2 1886 Rutherford HayesSamuel Blatchford Second March 4 1878 March 22 1882 Rutherford HayesHugh Bond Fourth July 13 1870 June 16 1891 note 2 Ulysses GrantDavid Brewer Eighth March 31 1884 December 18 1889 Chester ArthurHenry Caldwell Eighth March 4 1890 June 16 1891 note 2 Benjamin HarrisonLeBaron Colt First July 5 1884 June 16 1891 note 2 Chester ArthurJohn Dillon Eighth December 22 1869 September 1 1879 Ulysses GrantThomas Drummond Seventh December 22 1869 July 18 1884 Ulysses GrantHalmer Emmons Sixth January 17 1870 May 14 1877 Ulysses GrantWalter Gresham Seventh October 28 1884 Recess June 16 1891 note 2 Chester ArthurHowell Jackson Sixth April 12 1886 June 16 1891 note 2 Grover ClevelandAlexander Johnson Second October 25 1875 Recess January 26 1878 Ulysses GrantEmile Lacombe Second May 26 1887 Recess June 16 1891 note 2 Grover ClevelandJohn Lowell First December 18 1878 May 1 1884 Rutherford HayesGeorge McCrary Eighth December 9 1879 March 18 1884 Rutherford HayesWilliam McKennan Third December 22 1869 January 3 1891 Ulysses GrantDon Pardee Fifth May 13 1881 June 16 1891 note 2 James GarfieldLorenzo Sawyer Ninth January 10 1870 June 16 1891 note 2 Ulysses GrantGeorge Shepley First December 22 1869 July 20 1878 Ulysses GrantWilliam Wallace Second April 16 1882 June 16 1891 note 2 Chester ArthurLewis Woodruff Second December 22 1869 September 10 1875 Ulysses GrantWilliam Woods Fifth December 22 1869 December 23 1880 Ulysses GrantCircuit court judge of California edit Judge Circuit Began service Ended service Appointed byMatthew McAllister California March 3 1855 January 12 1863 Franklin PierceSee also editList of presidents of the United States by judicial appointmentsExplanatory notes edit a b Because of the unique structure of the United States Circuit Court for the District of Columbia the elevation of a sitting judge of the Court to chief judge of the Court is considered a separate appointment a b c d e f g h i j Transferred to the corresponding Court of Appeals by operation of law References edit a b c d White G Edward 2012 Law in American History Volume 1 From the Colonial Years Through the Civil War Oxford and New York Oxford University Press p 197 ISBN 9780190634940 Retrieved January 16 2022 a b c Glick Joshua April 2003 Comment On the Road The Supreme Court and the History of Circuit Riding Cardozo Law Review Messinger I Scott 2002 Order in the Courts A History of the Federal Court Clerk s Office Washington D C Federal Judicial Center p 18 After Midnight The Circuit Judges and the Repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801 From John Adams to United States Senate 21 February 1801 a b c d From John Adams to United States Senate 18 February 1801 From John Adams to United States Senate 25 February 1801 From John Adams to United States Senate 26 February 1801 From John Adams to United States Senate 28 February 1801 External links editFederal Judicial Center Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title United States circuit court amp oldid 1172286527, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
