Judges and Judgeships

Overall compensation of federal judges continues to lag seriously behind the growth of salaries and benefits received by those in comparable legal positions in private firms and academia.

Article III Judgeships

At the request of the Subcommittee on Judicial Statistics, AO staff worked with the Federal Judicial Center to develop new case weights for the district courts, based on input from judges nationwide, which the Committee on Judicial Resources approved in 2004. The Subcommittee also reviewed the materials and standards to be used in the 2005 Biennial Judgeship Survey of Judgeship Needs and developed preliminary recommendations for additional judgeships in the courts of appeals and district courts. In addition, the Subcommittee responded to cost-containment proposals from the Executive Committee, addressed improved statistical data collection and reporting within the Judiciary, and discussed the Conference policy regarding release of judge-specific data.

Bankruptcy Judgeships

There are currently 324 authorized bankruptcy judgeships. The Judicial Conference has a statutory duty to report to Congress every two years on the need for additional judgeships. To assist the Conference in fulfilling this duty, the Committee on the Administration of the Bankruptcy System conducts a national “additional needs” survey of all judicial districts. Administrative Office staff prepare statistics for review by the districts and circuit councils, conduct on-site surveys of requesting districts, and produce detailed reports and recommendations. During the 2004 survey, additional judgeships were requested by 31 districts. The Bankruptcy Committee will make its recommendations to the Judicial Conference at the March 2005 session.

The Senate approved 28 bankruptcy judgeships—the first since 1992. The House insisted on linking judgeships to bankruptcy reform legislation, which failed in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Magistrate Judge Positions

In fiscal year 2004, there were 487 full-time and 50 part-time magistrate judge positions, and three combination clerk-magistrate judge positions. For fiscal year 2005, another eight new full-time positions were authorized by the Judicial Conference, two of which represent conversions of existing part-time positions to full-time status. The increase is due to district courts’ caseload growth and their expanded use of magistrate judges.

Inter- and Intra-Circuit Assignments

The Conference Committee on Intercircuit Assignments reported that between January 1 and June 30, 2004 , the Chief Justice approved a total of 56 intercircuit assignments for 44 Article III judges. To help evaluate the costs and benefits of the program, the Committee recommended that the Administrative Office collect additional data on inter-circuit assignments. The Committee also requested the Committee on Judicial Resources to consider collecting data on intra-circuit assignments to ensure that data are collected on all visiting judge assignments. After determining that there should be more flexibility given to courts for requesting intercircuit assignments, the Committee recommended to the Chief Justice a change to the guideline related to the lender-borrower rule. The Committee also proposed to the Chief Justice a new guideline related to long-term assignments. Both guidelines were approved by the Chief Justice in July 2004. The Chief Justice approved both guidelines in July 2004.

Since additional bankruptcy judgeships were last authorized in 1992, the combination of inadequate numbers of authorized judgeships and a record-breaking national bankruptcy caseload has caused a judicial crisis in many bankruptcy courts. Over the past year, 10 bankruptcy courts awaiting authorization of additional bankruptcy judgeships utilized intra-circuit and inter-circuit assignments to address their overwhelming caseloads. Intra-circuit assignments also help single-judge districts when a conflict of interest arises for the resident judge.

For the 12-month period ended June 30, 2004 , bankruptcy judges reported 8,954 hours voluntarily assisting other districts. Bankruptcy judges reported expending 3,677 hours on intra-circuit trial-and-case-related work. Inter-circuit assignments accounted for 2,577 hours of extra-district service during the same time period. Administrative Office staff monitored and reported extra-district assignments, and assisted in identifying bankruptcy judges available and willing to serve on inter-circuit assignments. Nine retired bankruptcy judges were voluntarily recalled to participate in extra-district assignments. An average of 35 bankruptcy judges were recalled to service in
FY 2004.

Federal Rules of Practice and Procedure

The Judicial Conference Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure and its five advisory rules committees propose amendments to the rules that govern all federal court proceedings and affect the entire legal system.

AO staff supported the rules committees’ work during 2004 and also advised them on some 39 separate pieces of legislation introduced in, or passed by, the Congress during FY 2004 that could affect federal rules of practice, procedure, and evidence. Staff now use an electronic document management system to file, review, edit, search, index, and track rulemaking documents.

Public comment now is accepted on proposed amendments to the federal rules of practice and procedure via the Judiciary’s improved and expanded Federal Rulemaking Internet web site, at http://www.uscourts.gov/rules/. Users can review Rules Committee minutes and research the legislative history of rules amendments considered during the past decade.

Status of Proposed Rules Amendments

On April 26, 2004 , the Supreme Court approved amendments to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy and Criminal Procedure. The amendments to the Criminal Rules include comprehensive style and substantive amendments to several rules, which took effect on December 1, 2004 .

The Judicial Conference approved additional amendments to the Federal Rules of Appellate, Bankruptcy, Civil, and Criminal Procedure at its September 2004 session for submission to the Supreme Court. The proposed amendments to the Appellate Rules included a new rule establishing comprehensive procedures governing cross-appeals. Proposed amendments to Criminal Rules 29 (judgment of acquittal), 33 (new trial), 34 (arresting judgment), and 45 (computing and extending time) permit a court to extend the time for filing post-trial motions under these rules in certain conditions. Proposed new Criminal Rule 59 (magistrate judges) deals with the handling of dispositive and non-dispositive matters by a magistrate judge.

Judges’ Orientation and Benefits Programs

Last year, staff conducted orientations for Article III and Article I judgeship nominees on topics such as judicial governance, court personnel and procurement management, chambers staffing, judicial ethics, benefits, and personal security. Chief judge orientations address information targeted to their management and oversight responsibilities. A program of personalized follow-up sessions for relatively new chief judges who have identified specific needs for information has been temporarily discontinued due to budget constraints. In addition, in response to magistrate judges’ requests, the Administrative Office offered a presentation on the history and progress of the magistrate judges system.

Information on benefit choices and retirement options also was presented to judges at various stages in their careers. Particular efforts were dedicated to providing information to judges and their spouses related to the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) open season. Several programs were presented as part of the Federal Judicial Center 's live and video orientation programs for new Article III judges, bankruptcy judges, and magistrate judges, including programs related to retirement planning.

Chief Judges’ Budget Training

Throughout FY 2004, the AO staff provided instruction and training to more than one dozen chief judges participating in the Chief Judge Orientation sessions sponsored by the AO. These briefings highlighted the chief judge’s roles and responsibilities with regard to financial management, stewardship issues, and a general overview of the Judiciary’s budget process. Additionally, staff reviewed current budget and staffing data with the judges pertaining to their respective court units.

Staff also participated in the Federal Judicial Center ’s annual seminars for bankruptcy and district court chief judges. At these sessions, chief judges were briefed on the potential budget shortfalls facing the Judiciary in FY 2005 and beyond. They were also encouraged to contact and educate their local congressional delegations about the Judiciary budget.

Financial Disclosure

The Judicial Conference Committee on Financial Disclosure and the Administrative Office informed new judges on financial disclosure filing requirements and procedures, with live and video orientations sponsored by the Federal Judicial Center . Training programs for judges’ secretaries and judicial assistants included information to help them assist judges preparing their financial disclosure reports.

This year, at the direction of the Committee on Financial Disclosure, the Administrative Office began a review of the Judicial Conference regulations governing the release of financial disclosure reports. Established internal operating procedures were reviewed to identify ways of making the release and redaction process more efficient while minimizing the security risks and workload burdens for the Judiciary’s filers. Initial staff efforts have reduced the time to process public requests for copies of judges’ financial disclosure reports by about 50 percent.

International Judicial Relations

Maintaining an international dialogue about the rule of law continued to be an important task for the Judicial Conference Committee on International Judicial Relations and the Administrative Office this past year. Requests for information and assistance came from the judiciaries of other countries, international organizations, and U.S. Government agencies involved in judicial reform and rule-of-law activities. In 2004, The AO hosted approximately 200 Russian judges as part of the Open World Program sponsored by the Library of Congress, which also took the judges to state and federal courts around the country. Briefings were also conducted for 65 international delegations, including over 445 judges, court administrators and other officials from more than four dozen countries. U.S. judges and court administrators participated in many of these briefings via videoconference.

Administrative Office staff also initiated a project to record the experience and insights of U.S. judges and court administrators who have been involved in international judicial reform and rule-of-law activities. Staff interviewed over 25 judges and clerks in person or by telephone.

Briefings on bankruptcy court operations were held at the AO for visiting Russian judges of the Arbitrazh Courts, which handle commercial disputes. Staff also conducted briefings on the bankruptcy court system for a judge and court administrator from Japan , and contributed to a monograph by the International Association of Insolvency Regulators with an article discussing the problem of abuse of the reorganization process.

Federal Law Clerk Information System

The Federal Law Clerk Information System (FLCIS) lists law clerk employment opportunities within the federal courts on the Judiciary's public web site, www.uscourts.gov. In 2004, 60 percent of all judges participated in the program. The database proved to be a useful resource for potential law clerk applicants, supporting more than 4,600 search inquiries per day by year’s end. A sudden increase in inquiries in July and August indicated that potential applicants used the system to search for clerkship opportunities earlier than in years past. Efforts are ongoing to provide assistance and advice to judges on the benefits of the system.

Publications for Judges

The Administrative Office is in the final stage of revising the Judges Information Series handbook, Getting Started as a Federal Judge. The second edition of this booklet, scheduled for publication in the coming year, includes significant revisions to reflect administrative, legal, legislative, and policy changes since the original publication of Getting Started in 1997. The revised publication includes a new chapter on judges’ stewardship responsibilities, substantive updates of pay and benefit information, and significantly updated sections relating to information technology programs for judges, statistics, emergency preparedness, and security.

In addition, work was completed this year on A Brief Guide to Judges’ Travel and a companion “quick reference” brochure, made available on the Judiciary’s intranet. This resource, the ninth title in the Judges Information Series, offers a concise description of the travel regulations and policies applicable to U.S. judges.

Various memoranda have been sent to the courts summarizing significant recent cases that address the authority of magistrate judges. In addition, newly updated bulletins and supporting material on the effective use of magistrate judges have been distributed to courts seeking advice on this topic.

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