Judicial vacancies in federal courts

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U.S. Federal Courts
Vacancies and Nominations
Judicial vacancies in federal courts • Judicial vacancies during the Biden administration • Federal judges nominated by Joe Biden • Federal judicial appointments by president • Supreme Court vacancy, 2022
ABA ratings of presidential federal judicial nominees • ABA ratings during the Biden administration • ABA ratings during the Trump administration

Ballotpedia's Federal Judicial Vacancy Count tracks the vacancy levels in the federal courts for Article III judges. As of the monthly report for November 1, 2024, there were 46 vacancies across 870 Article III judgeships in the United States.

Article III judges serve on courts authorized by Article III of the Constitution, which created and enumerated the powers of the judiciary. They are appointed for life terms. A vacancy occurs when a judge resigns, retires, takes senior status, or passes away. To read more about how vacancies are filled, click here.

This page provides highlights of the most recent Federal Judicial Vacancy Count, a map of federal district court vacancies across the country, and navigation to more than 200 released editions of the report.

As of November 1, 2024, the number of federal court vacancies was as follows:

The chart below shows federal court vacancies from April 2011 to the present.


Federal Judicial Vacancy Count: September 1, 2024

See also: The Federal Judicial Vacancy Count 11/1/2024

The vacancy level was Bluedot.png in October 2024. The total vacancy percentage was 5.3 percent, and there were 46 vacancies out of 870 Article III judicial positions.

A breakdown of the vacancies at each level can be found in the table below. For a more detailed look at the vacancies on the federal courts, click here.


Key:
(Numbers indicate % of seats vacant.)
0%1%-9%
10%-24%25%-40%
More than 40%


Though the United States territorial courts are named as district courts, they are not Article III courts. They are created in accordance with the power granted under Article IV of the U.S. Constitution. Click here for more information.

New vacancies

Three judges left active status, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies. As Article III judicial positions, these vacancies must be filled by a nomination from the president. Nominations are subject to confirmation on the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate.


New nominations

President Joe Biden (D) announced two new nominations since the previous report.

Since taking office in January 2021, Biden has nominated 253 individuals to Article III positions.

New confirmations

There have been no new confirmations since the previous report:

As of November 1, 2024, the Senate has confirmed 213 of President Biden's Article III judicial nominees—166 district court judges, 44 appeals court judges, two international trade judges, and one Supreme Court justice—since his inauguration on January 20, 2021. To review a complete list of Biden's confirmed nominees, click here.


Map of federal district court vacancies


Previously published reports

Below is a list of all Federal Judicial Vacancy Count reports sorted by year. The most recent year appears in reverse chronological order, while previous years are presented in chronological order.

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

Background

Article III judges

The number of federal judicial positions is set by the United States Congress, which authorizes a set number of judge positions for each level of the courts and makes adjustments as necessary.[1][2]

Article III


Article I


Other


The federal nomination process

Federal judges are nominated by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate. There are multiple steps to the process:

  • The president nominates an individual for a judicial seat.
  • The nominee fills out a questionnaire and is reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
  • The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing with the nominee, questioning them about things like their judicial philosophy, past rulings or opinions, etc.
  • As part of this process, the committee sends a blue slip to senators from the home state in which the judicial nomination was received, allowing them to express their approval or disapproval of the nominee.
  • After the hearing, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote to approve or return the nominee.
  • If approved, the nominee is voted on by the full Senate.
  • If the Committee votes to return the nominee to the president, the president has the opportunity to re-nominate the individual.
  • The Senate holds a vote on the candidate.
  • If the Senate confirms the nomination, the nominee receives a commission to serve a lifelong position as a federal judge.
  • If the Senate does not confirm the nomination, that nominee does not become a judge.


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Federal Judiciary Frequently Asked Questions
  2. ↑ U.S. Courts chart of Federal Judgeships, 2008
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 United States Courts, "Federal Judgeships," accessed March 12, 2019
  4. ↑ United States Courts, "Status of Bankruptcy Judgeships — Judicial Business 2018," accessed April 1, 2019
  5. ↑ United States Courts, "Status of Magistrate Judge Positions and Appointments — Judicial Business 2018," accessed April 1, 2019
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