Comments on: Should the Ninth Circuit be split?

By: mx

mx — Fri, 10 Feb 2017 04:02:39 +0000

In reply to Noncenx. The proposal, as I understand it, is to not add new judges, but to simply redistribute the existing 9th Circuit judicial positions across the 9th and the new 12th. To the extent that the circuit is overburdened and needs more judges to decide cases more quickly, that seems largely irrelevant to whether it is split into two administrative units. There are already four vacancies on the court (and 15 in the Ninth's district courts) that could be filled right now in the interest of swift access to justice if the President and Congress so choose.

By: PaulB

PaulB — Fri, 10 Feb 2017 00:45:15 +0000

I know that it’s too complicated to redraw the COA boundaries nationwide but they have serious problems. The First is basically greater Boston. Doesn’t even manage to cover all of Red Sox Nation. The Tenth looks like it was designed to cover the cavalry posts from John Ford’s movies. Maybe when we have a president and an overwhelming majority in Congress the circuit boundaries can be redrawn to reflect current population levels in America.

By: Boblipton

Boblipton — Fri, 10 Feb 2017 00:15:39 +0000

In reply to PaulB. Masochism?

By: Walter Olson

Walter Olson — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 23:54:46 +0000

Just to clarify, a decision to split an overlarge circuit in two does not necessarily imply that any new vacancies will be created for appointing judges. I believe in the case of the old Fifth Circuit, the existing judges simply joined whichever of the circuits included their own states. Through custom and courtesy the geographic composition of judges on a circuit already bears a rough proportion to the population and caseload of the constituent states, so the existing number of judges from non-California states probably should roughly match what would be needed in a non-California Twelfth Circuit.

By: Noncenx

Noncenx — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 23:38:18 +0000

The more I think about it, the more I think if its going to happen, now is the time. With a Republican Congress and President, there’s really nothing to stop them since the filibuster for all but Supreme Court judges has been done away with.

Don’t we live in interesting times.

By: Noncenx

Noncenx — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 23:18:09 +0000

Can you imagine the fight if Congress tries to do it now? First they would fight, just because that’s what they do. And then the real fun begins when it come to appointing judges and watching all the heads explode.

Whooooo Buddy.

By: MattS

MattS — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 20:20:16 +0000

In reply to Don L.

Here is the first sentence of Article 3 of the US Constitution.

“The judicial power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.”

Notice that the only court specifically created by the constitution is the Supreme Court.

Even there, the constitution leaves it up to the Congress to determine the size of the Supreme Court.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Three_of_the_United_States_Constitution

By: PaulB

PaulB — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 19:36:21 +0000

Walter, I don’t think it was a coincidence that the Eleventh, with its HQ in Atlanta, occurred when we had a President from Georgia and an AG who previously was an Atlanta law partner.

By: Allan

Allan — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 19:04:18 +0000

In reply to Allan. And if they really wanted to mess with California, they would split the state so that 1/2 (inland?) would go to one circuit and the other 1/2 (seaside) would go to the other. Maybe a north/south split would be interesting, too.

By: Walter Olson

Walter Olson — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 18:11:21 +0000

In reply to Don L. Yes, as it did when it created the Eleventh Circuit in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-452).