On Thursday, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved a bipartisan proposal to add 66 new judges to understaffed federal district courts across the country over the next decade. If enacted, this proposal would mark the first major expansion of the judiciary since 1990.
The bill, which passed by unanimous consent, aims to address longstanding requests from the judiciary to help manage rising caseloads by adding judges in 25 district courts across 13 states, including California, Texas, and Delaware. The bill now moves to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Since 2003, no new judgeship has been created, with previous attempts to expand the federal bench stalling in an increasingly partisan Congress. Lawmakers feared creating new vacancies that a president from the opposing party might fill. The latest bill, known as the JUDGES Act, addresses these concerns by incrementally creating new judicial seats over ten years, starting in January 2025, after the November 5 presidential election.
Republicans and Democrats who co-sponsored the bill believe it is necessary to address a significant increase in court filings since 1990. That year, Congress created 11 new circuit court judgeships and 74 new seats on district courts in the last comprehensive judgeship bill.
“For decades, Congress has failed to authorize new federal judgeships, creating a massive backlog of case filings for our nation’s federal judges – especially in Delaware, where there are only four active judgeships,” said Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, one of the bill’s sponsors, in a statement.
The judiciary currently has 677 authorized district court seats and 10 temporary ones, which would become permanent under separate legislation passed by the Senate in April and awaiting consideration by the House.
Initially introduced in 2023, the JUDGES Act would have added half of the new judges in 2025 and the other half in 2029. The amended version passed by the Senate on Thursday will add new judgeships in five tranches through 2035, with three temporary judgeships in Oklahoma.
A companion bill pending in the Republican-led House has the backing of Representative Darrell Issa of California, chair of the House Judiciary Committee’s panel on courts, intellectual property, and the internet.
“We are grateful that the Senate passed the JUDGES Act today. We are hopeful the House will take up this measure and pass it when they return next month,” said Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr., director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. “The Judicial Conference carefully considers the needs of the Judiciary in making its judgeship recommendations and appreciates the Senate’s efforts to add critically needed judgeships.”
