Federal Courts, Empty Benches: The Wednesday Vacancy Count 8/14/2013
August 14, 2013
- For a District by District break down, see: Federal Court Vacancy Warning System
The vacancy warning level for the U.S. Federal courts is currently set at Yellow. There were no changes this past week, leaving the final tally at 87 vacancies or approximately 10% of the total Article III posts currently unfilled. The vacancy information for the various court levels is as follows:
| Key: | |
| (Percentage of seats vacant.) | |
| 0% | 1%-9% |
| 10%-24% | 25%-40% |
| More than 40% | |
| Supreme Court | 0% or no vacancies |
| Appeals Courts | 8.9% or 16 vacancies |
| District Courts | 10.4% or 71 vacancies |
There are currently 9 Supreme Court posts, 179 appellate court posts and 681 district court posts for a total of 869 Article III judges. This count includes four temporary posts, one each in the District of Columbia, Northern District of Alabama, District of Arizona, Southern District of Florida and the Central District of California. This also includes two shared post between the two Missouri districts and the two Kentucky districts, which count as two posts with separate vacancies.
Weekly map
The new weekly map feature will be updated every week and posted here and on the vacancy warning level analysis page.
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News
There were no new confirmations, vacancies or nominations this past week. This gives us the opportunity to highlight judges in the news and review potential upcoming Senate votes.
Presidential Medal of Freedom
On August 8, 2013, President Barack Obama announced the 2013 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Presidential Medal of Freedom celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The White House Press release describes the medal, stating:
| “ | The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the Nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.[1][2] | ” |
Included in this years list of recipients is Judge Patricia Wald. Judge Wald joined the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on July 26, 1979. She was nominated by President Jimmy Carter and was the first woman to be nominated to the prestigious court. She served as the chief judge from 1986-1991. She retired on November 16, 1999 and went on to serve on the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague and currently serves on the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. She earned her B.A. in 1948 from Connecticut College for Women. She went on to attend Yale Law School, earning her LL.B. in 1951 as one of only 11 women in her graduating class. She has earned the National Public Service Award from The John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law at Stanford Law School. She is the first judge to receive the award that did not serve on the United States Supreme Court.
Potential upcoming votes
The following nominees have been approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee and are pending action by the Senate as a whole.
- Andrea R. Wood, Court: Northern District of Illinois, Committee Vote: July 18, 2013 (28 days days since reported by committee)
- Colin Stirling Bruce, Court: Central District of Illinois, Committee Vote: July 18, 2013 (28 days days since reported by committee)
- Debra M. Brown, Court: Northern District of Mississippi, Committee Vote: August 1, 2013 (14 days days since reported by committee)
- Elaine Kaplan, Court: Federal Claims, Committee Vote: June 6, 2013 (70 days days since reported by committee)
- Elizabeth A. Wolford, Court: Western District of New York, Committee Vote: August 1, 2013 (14 days days since reported by committee)
- Gregory Howard Woods, Court: Southern District of New York, Committee Vote: August 1, 2013 (14 days days since reported by committee)
- Madeline Haikala, Court: Northern District of Alabama, Committee Vote: July 18, 2013 (28 days days since reported by committee)
- Patricia Ann Millett, Court: District of Columbia Circuit, Committee Vote: August 1, 2013 (14 days days since reported by committee)
- Patricia Campbell-Smith, Court: United States Court of Federal Claims, Committee Vote: June 6, 2013 (70 days days since reported by committee)
- Sara Lee Ellis, Court: Northern District of Illinois, Committee Vote: July 18, 2013 (28 days days since reported by committee)
- Todd Hughes, Court: Federal Circuit, Committee Vote: July 18, 2013 (28 days days since reported by committee)
- Valerie Caproni, Court: Southern District of New York, Committee Vote: June 13, 2013 (63 days days since reported by committee)
- Vernon Broderick, Court: Southern District of New York, Committee Vote: June 13, 2013 (63 days days since reported by committee)
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ "President Obama Names Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients" 9/8/2013
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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