The Federal Vacancy Count 2/18/2015
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February 18, 2015
This week's Federal Vacancy Count includes nominations, confirmations and vacancies from February 11, 2015, to February 17, 2015. Nominations, confirmations and vacancies occurring on February 18 will be reflected in the February 25 report.
The number of vacant seats continued to grow this week as there were two new vacancies created. The Senate Judiciary Committee chose not to hold the hearings for nine nominees that were scheduled for February 12, 2015.[1]
The vacancy warning level remained at blue this week after two new vacancies, no new nominations and no new confirmations. The vacancy percentage rose to 5.5 percent, and the total number of nominees waiting for confirmation remained at 13. The number of vacancies of Article III judges rose to 48 out of 874. A breakdown of the vacancies on each level can be found in the table below. For a more detailed look at the vacancies on the federal courts, see our Federal Court Vacancy Warning System.
Vacancies by court
| Court | # of Seats | Vacancies |
| Supreme Court | 9 | 0% or no vacancies |
| Appeals Courts | 179 | 3.9% or 7 vacancies |
| District Courts | 677 | 5.6% or 38 vacancies |
| International Trade | 9 | 33.3% or 3 vacancies |
| All Judges | 874 | 5.5% or 48 vacancies |
New vacancies
District of New Jersey
Joel Pisano
| Joel Pisano retired from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on February 16, 2015. Pisano received his appointment to the court from President Bill Clinton in 2000. Prior to his appointment, Pisano was a magistrate judge for the same court. He earned his undergraduate degree from Lafayette College in 1971 and his J.D. from Seton Hall University in 1974.[2]
Pisano's retirement creates a second vacancy on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The vacancy warning level rose from blue to yellow. |
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Western District of Texas
Robert Junell
| On February 13, 2015, Robert Junell assumed senior status for the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. Junell was appointed to the court by President George W. Bush in 2003. Prior to joining the court, Junell was an attorney in private practice with the law firm of Jackson Walker LLP. He served in the United States Army from 1970 to 1973. Junell earned his undergraduate degree and J.D. from Texas Tech University in 1969 and 1976, respectively. He also received an undergraduate degree from the New Mexico Military Institute and a master's degree from the University of Arkansas.[3]
The transition creates the only vacancy on the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. The vacancy warning level rose from green to blue. |
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New confirmations
There were no new confirmations in the past week.
New nominations
There were no new nominations in the past week.
Weekly map
The weekly map is updated every week and posted here and on the Federal Court Vacancy Warning System analysis page.
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See also
Footnotes
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