The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate
jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:
Central District of Illinois Northern District of Illinois
Southern District of Illinois Northern District of Indiana
Southern District of Indiana Eastern District of Wisconsin
Western District of Wisconsin The court is based at the Dirksen Federal
Building in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of thirteen United States courts of appeals,
composed of eleven judges. The court offers a unique internet presence
that includes wiki and RSS feeds of opinions and oral arguments. No other United States
District or Appellate Court offers oral arguments using these feeds to the internet, with the
exception of United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the United States
Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, that offer RSS features. It is also notable for
having two of the most prominent law and economics scholars, Judge Easterbrook and Judge Posner,
on its court. There is one current vacancy on the Seventh
Circuit and one future vacancy.
Current composition of the court As of October 1, 2013, the judges on the court
were as follows:
Vacancies and pending nominations
List of former judges Thirty-nine judges have served on the 7th
Circuit Court of Appeals, but no longer do: Chief judges
In order to qualify for the office of Chief Judge, a judge must have been in active service
on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served
as Chief Judge. A vacancy in the office of Chief Judge is filled by the judge highest
in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The Chief Judge serves for a term
of seven years or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived
if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position. Unlike the
Chief Justice of the United States, a Chief Judge returns to active service after the
expiration of his or her term and does not create a vacancy on the bench by the fact
of his or her promotion. See 28 U.S.C. § 45. The above rules have applied since October
1, 1982. The office of Chief Judge was created in 1948 and until August 6, 1959 was filled
by the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire on what has since 1958 been known
as senior status or declined to serve as Chief Judge. From then until 1982 it was filled
by the senior such judge who had not turned 70.
The current Chief Judge of the Seventh Circuit is Judge Diane Wood, who succeeded Judge Frank
H. Easterbrook in October 2013. Judge Wood is the first female chief judge of the court.
Succession of seats The court has eleven seats for active judges,
numbered in the order in which they were filled. Judges who retire into senior status remain
on the bench but leave their seat vacant. That seat is filled by the next circuit judge
appointed by the president. See also
Federal judicial appointment history#Seventh Circuit
Same-sex marriage in the Seventh Circuit Courts of Illinois
References
"Standard Search". Federal Law Clerk Information System. Retrieved July 2, 2005.
primary but incomplete source for the duty stations
"Instructions for Judicial Directory". University of Texas Law School. Archived from the original
on November 11, 2005. Retrieved July 2, 2005. secondary source for the duty stations
data is current to 2002
"U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit". Official website of the Federal Judicial Center.
Archived from the original on April 18, 2005. Retrieved July 2, 2005.
source for the state, lifetime, term of active judgeship, term of chief judgeship, term of
senior judgeship, appointer, termination reason, and seat information
External links United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh
Circuit Recent opinions from FindLaw
Official wiki of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit — Launched
April 18, 2007 The Seventh Circuit Review