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Chief Judge | Judicial Council | Circuit Executive | Clerk of Court | Senior Staff Attorney

Federal court of appeals judges are Article III judges appointed for life. Each judge is authorized to maintain a staff that usually includes three law clerks and two secretaries (judicial assistants).

The chief judge has an important role in court management. By statute, the chief judge is the judge senior in commission who, at the inception of chief judge service, has served on the court at least one year and is under the age of 65. A chief judge may serve for a maximum of seven years, and may not serve as chief judge beyond the age of 70. As the presiding official of a court of appeals, the chief judge has both legal and functional authority over court administration.

The chief judge has specific statutory responsibilities for the management of the court and its cases, to facilitate the smooth and efficient operation of the court and the timely hearing and disposition of cases. For example, the chief judge has responsibility to ensure the administration of cases by providing a sufficient number of judges to sit on appellate panels. This includes the authority to certify the need for a temporary assignment of a judge from another circuit to serve on a district court or the court of appeals; to designate or assign a circuit judge with the circuit to hold district court in any district within the circuit; to designate or assign a district judge to sit on the court of appeals; or to designate or assign temporarily a district judge to hold a district court in any district in the circuit. The chief judge has statutory authority to certify that an emergency exists that would permit the formation of a panel not consisting of a majority of judges from the same court of appeals, which normally is required by statute.

The chief judge also has administrative responsibilities relating to the court's operation, including presiding over court meetings and coordinating decision-making activities of the court. This includes the appointment and oversight of a court staff, including the clerk of court and the senior staff attorney. The chief judge's responsibilities include budgetary and administrative authority.

This page is maintained by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on behalf of the U.S. Courts. The purpose of this site is to function as a clearinghouse for information from and about the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government.

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