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Status of Bankruptcy Judgeships — Judicial Business 2021

As of September 30, 2021, a total of 345 bankruptcy judgeships were authorized and funded, the same number as one year earlier. Of these judgeships, 310 were filled and 35 were vacant (compared with 307 filled positions and 38 vacant positions on the same date in 2020). In addition to judges in authorized positions, 24 retired bankruptcy judges who had been recalled by various circuit councils were providing service to the Judiciary at the end of September 2021.

For information on the status of bankruptcy judgeships since 2017, see Table 11.

Table 11
Status of Bankruptcy Judgeship Positions
September 30, 2017 - 2021
Year	Authorized Judgeships	Vacancies	Recalled Judges
2017	349	22	26
2018	350¹	29	29
2019	347²	31	28
2020	345³	38	27
2021	345	35	24
¹ In 2018, Congress authorized four new temporary judgeships: two in the District of Delaware, one in the Middle District of Florida, and one in the Eastern District of Michigan. That year, three temporary judgeships lapsed: two in the Central District of California and one in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. ² In 2019, three temporary judgeships lapsed: one in the Southern District of Mississippi, one in the Eastern District of California, and one in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. ³ In 2020, two temporary judgeships lapsed: one in the Western District of Tennessee and one in the Central District of California.