United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

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The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States District Courts:

• Western, Middle, and Eastern Districts of Louisiana
• Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi
• Western, Eastern, Northern, and Southern Districts of Texas

The court is based at the John Minor Wisdom U.S. Courthouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Prior to the creation of the Eleventh Circuit, which came into existence on October 1, 1981 under Public Law 96-452, the Fifth Circuit also included Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Until March 31, 1982, the Fifth Circuit also had jurisdiction over the Panama Canal Zone.

Contents

1 Current composition of the court 2 List of former judges 2.1 The Fifth Circuit Four 3 Chief judges 4 Succession of seats 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

Current composition of the court

As of Priscilla Owen's oath of office on June 6, 2005, the judges on the court are:

Title	Name	Duty Station	Born	Term of Active Service	Term of Service as Chief	Term of Senior Service	Appointed by
Chief Judge	Carolyn Dineen King(a)	Houston, Texas	1938	1979 – present	1999 – present	—	Carter
Circuit Judge	Patrick Errol Higginbotham	Dallas, Texas	1938	1982 – present	(none)	—	Reagan
Circuit Judge	E. Grady Jolly	Jackson, Mississippi	1937	1982 – present	(none)	—	Reagan
Circuit Judge	W. Eugene Davis	Lafayette, Louisiana	1936	1983 – present	(none)	—	Reagan
Circuit Judge	Edith Hollan Jones	Houston, Texas	1949	1985 – present	(none)	—	Reagan
Circuit Judge	Jerry Edwin Smith		1946	1987 – present	(none)	—	Reagan
Circuit Judge	Rhesa Hawkins Barksdale	Jackson, Mississippi	1944	1990 – present	(none)	—	G.H.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Jacques Loeb Wiener, Jr.	New Orleans, Louisiana	1934	1990 – present	(none)	—	G.H.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Emilio M. Garza	San Antonio, Texas	1947	1991 – present	(none)	—	G.H.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Harold R. DeMoss, Jr.	Houston, Texas	1930	1991 – present	(none)	—	G.H.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Fortunato Pedro Benavides		1947	1994 – present	(none)	—	Clinton
Circuit Judge	Carl E. Stewart		1950	1994 – present	(none)	—	Clinton
Circuit Judge	James L. Dennis	New Orleans, Louisiana	1936	1995 – present	(none)	—	Clinton
Circuit Judge	Edith Brown Clement	New Orleans, Louisiana	1948	2001 – present	(none)	—	G.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Edward Charles Prado	San Antonio, Texas	1947	2003 – present	(none)	—	G.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	Priscilla Richman Owen		1947	2005 – present	(none)	—	G.W. Bush
Circuit Judge	(vacant)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)
Senior Circuit Judge	Thomas Morrow Reavley	Austin, Texas	1921	1979 – 1990	(none)	1990 – present	Carter
Senior Circuit Judge	William Lockhart Garwood	Austin, Texas	1931	1981 – 1997	(none)	1997 – present	Reagan
Senior Circuit Judge	John Malcolm Duhé, Jr.	Lafayette, Louisiana	1933	1988 – 1999	(none)	1999 — present	Reagan

^(a) Prior to January 1, 1988, King was named Carolyn Dineen Randall.

List of former judges

Name	State	Born/Died	Term of Active Service	Term of Service as Chief	Term of Senior Service	Appointed by	Reason Appointment Terminated
Don Albert Pardee	LA	1837 – 1919	1891 – 1919	(none)	(none)	(a)	death
Andrew Phelps McCormick	TX	1832 – 1916	1892 – 1916	(none)	(none)	B. Harrison	death
David Davie Shelby	AL	1847 – 1914	1899 – 1914	(none)	(none)	McKinley	death
Richard Wilde Walker	AL	1857 – 1936	1914 – 1930	(none)	1930 – 1936	Wilson	death
Robert Lynn Batts	TX	1864 – 1935	1917 – 1919	(none)	(none)	Wilson	resignation
Nathan Philemon Bryan	FL	1872 – 1935	1920 – 1935	(none)	(none)	Wilson	death
Alexander Campbell King	GA	1856 – 1926	1920 – 1924	(none)	(none)	Wilson	resignation
Rufus Edward Foster	LA	1871 – 1942	1925 – 1942	(none)	(none)	Coolidge	death
Samuel Hale Sibley	GA	1873 – 1958	1931 – 1949	(none)	1949 – 1958	Hoover	death
Joseph Chappell Hutcheson, Jr.	TX	1879 – 1973	1931 – 1964	1948 – 1959	1964 – 1973	Hoover	death
Edwin Ruthven Holmes	MS	1878 – 1961	1936 – 1954	(none)	1954 – 1961	F. Roosevelt	death
Leon Clarence McCord	AL	1878 – 1952	1938 – 1951	(none)	1951 – 1952	F. Roosevelt	death
Curtis Longino Waller	FL	1887 – 1950	1943 – 1950	(none)	(none)	F. Roosevelt	death
Elmo Pearce Lee	LA	1882 – 1949	1943 – 1949	(none)	(none)	F. Roosevelt	death
Wayne G. Borah	LA	1891 – 1966	1949 – 1956	(none)	1956 – 1966	Truman	death
Robert Lee Russell	GA	1900 – 1955	1949 – 1955	(none)	(none)	Truman	death
Louie Willard Strum	FL	1890 – 1954	1950 – 1954	(none)	(none)	Truman	death
Richard Taylor Rives	AL	1895 – 1982	1951 – 1966	1959 – 1960	1966 – 1981	Truman	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Elbert Parr Tuttle	GA	1897 – 1996	1954 – 1968	1960 – 1967	1968 – 1981	Eisenhower	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Benjamin Franklin Cameron	MS	1890 – 1964	1955 – 1964	(none)	(none)	Eisenhower	death
Warren Leroy Jones	FL	1895 – 1993	1955 – 1966	(none)	1966 – 1981	Eisenhower	reassignment to 11th Circuit
John Robert Brown	TX	1909 – 1984	1955 – 1984	1967 – 1979	1984 – 1993	Eisenhower	death
John Minor Wisdom	LA	1905 – 1999	1957 – 1977	(none)	1977 – 1999	Eisenhower	death
Griffin Boyette Bell	GA	1918 – present	1961(b) – 1976	(none)	(none)	Kennedy	resignation
Walter Pettus Gewin	AL	1908 – 1981	1961(b) – 1976	(none)	1976 – 1981	Kennedy	death
William Homer Thornberry	TX	1909 – 1995	1965 – 1978	(none)	1978 – 1995	L. Johnson	death
James Plemon Coleman	MS	1914 – 1991	1965 – 1981	1979 – 1981	1981 – 1984	L. Johnson	resignation
Robert Andrew Ainsworth, Jr.	LA	1910 – 1981	1966 – 1981	(none)	(none)	L. Johnson	death
John Cooper Godbold	AL	1920 – present	1966 – 1981	1981 – 1981	(none)	L. Johnson	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Irving Loeb Goldberg	TX	1906 – 1995	1966 – 1980	(none)	1980 – 1995	L. Johnson	death
David William Dyer	FL	1910 – 1998	1966 – 1976	(none)	1976 – 1981	L. Johnson	reassignment to 11th Circuit
John Milton Bryan Simpson	FL	1903 – 1987	1966 – 1975	(none)	1975 – 1981	L. Johnson	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Claude Feemster Clayton	MS	1909 – 1969	1967 – 1969	(none)	(none)	L. Johnson	death
Lewis Render Morgan	GA	1913 – 2001	1968 – 1978	(none)	1978 – 1981	L. Johnson	reassignment to 11th Circuit
George Harrold Carswell	FL	1919 – 1992	1969 – 1970	(none)	(none)	Nixon	resignation
Charles Clark	MS	1925 – present	1969 – 1992	1981 – 1992	(none)	Nixon	retirement
Joe McDonald Ingraham	TX	1903 – 1990	1969 – 1973	(none)	1973 – 1990	Nixon	death
Paul Hitch Roney	FL	1921 – present	1970 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Nixon	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Thomas Gibbs Gee	TX	1925 – 1994	1973 – 1991	(none)	(none)	Nixon	retirement
Gerald Bard Tjoflat	FL	1929 – present	1975 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Ford	reassignment to 11th Circuit
James Clinkscales Hill	GA	1924 – present	1976 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Ford	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Peter Thorp Fay	FL	1929 – present	1976 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Ford	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Alvin Benjamin Rubin	LA	1920 – 1991	1977 – 1989	(none)	1989 – 1991	Carter	death
Robert Smith Vance	AL	1931 – 1989	1977 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Phyllis A. Kravitch	GA	1920 – present	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Frank Minis Johnson, Jr.	AL	1918 – 1999	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
R. Lanier Anderson III	GA	1936 – present	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Reynaldo Guerra Garza	TX	1915 – 2004	1979 – 1982	(none)	1982 – 2004	Carter	death
Joseph Woodrow Hatchett	FL	1932 – present	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Albert John Henderson	GA	1920 – 1999	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Henry Anthony Politz	LA	1932 – 2002	1979 – 1999	1992 – 1999	1999 – 2002	Carter	death
Samuel D. Johnson, Jr.	TX	1920 – 2002	1979 – 1991	(none)	1991 – 2002	Carter	death
Albert Tate, Jr.	LA	1920 – 1986	1979 – 1986	(none)	(none)	Carter	death
Thomas Alonzo Clark	GA	1920 – present	1979 – 1981	(none)	(none)	Carter	reassignment to 11th Circuit
Jerre Stockton Williams	TX	1916 – 1993	1980 – 1990	(none)	1990 – 1993	Carter	death
Robert Madden Hill	TX	1928 – 1987	1984 – 1987	(none)	(none)	Reagan	death
Robert Manley Parker	TX	1937 – present	1994 – 2002	(none)	(none)	Clinton	retirement
Charles Willis Pickering, Sr.	MS	1937 – present	2004(c) – 2004	(none)	(none)	G.W. Bush	retirement

^(a) Pardee was appointed to the bend of the United States Circuit Court for the Fifth Circuit in 1881 by James A. Garfield. The Judiciary Act of 1891 reassigned his seat to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

^(b) Recess appointment, confirmed by the Senate at a later date.

^(c) Recess appointment, never confirmed or rejected by the Senate.

The Fifth Circuit Four

During the late 1950s, Chief Judge Elbert Tuttle and his three colleagues John Minor Wisdom, John Brown, and Richard Rives became known as the "Fifth Circuit Four" (or simply "The Four") for decisions crucial in advancing the civil rights of African-Americans; in this they were opposed by Ben Cameron.

Chief judges

Chief Judge Hutcheson 1948 – 1959 Rives 1959 – 1960 Tuttle 1960 – 1967 Brown 1967 – 1979 Coleman 1979 – 1981 Godbold 1981 – 1981 C. Clark 1981 – 1992 Politz 1992 – 1999 C. King 1999 – present

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 (http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=browse_usc&docid=Cite:+28USC45).

Succession of seats

The court has had 29 seats for active judges. Twelve of these seats were reassigned to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, leaving a seventeen-seat court. The seats are numbered in order of their creation. If seats were established simultaneously, they are 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.

Seat 1 Established on December 10, 1869 by the Judiciary Act of 1869 as a seat of the United States Circuit Court for the Fifth Circuit Reassigned to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit by the Judiciary Act of 1891 Pardee 1891 – 1919 A. King 1920 – 1924 Foster 1925 – 1942 Lee 1943 – 1949 Borah 1949 – 1956 Wisdom 1957 – 1977 Rubin 1977 – 1989 Barksdale 1990 – present

Seat 2 Established on June 16, 1891 by the Judiciary Act of 1891 McCormick 1892 – 1916 Batts 1917 – 1919 Bryan 1920 – 1935 Holmes 1936 – 1954 Cameron 1955 – 1964 Coleman 1965 – 1981 Jolly 1982 – present

Seat 3 Established on January 25, 1899 by 30 Stat. 803 Shelby 1899 – 1914 Walker 1914 – 1930 Sibley 1931 – 1949 Russell 1949 – 1955 Brown 1955 – 1984 R. Hill 1984 – 1987 Wiener 1990 – present

Seat 4 Established on June 10, 1930 by 46 Stat. 538 Hutcheson 1931 – 1964 Thornberry 1965 – 1978 R. Garza 1979 – 1982 Higginbotham 1982 – present

Seat 5 Established on May 31, 1938 by 52 Stat. 584 McCord 1938 – 1951 Rives 1951 – 1966 Godbold 1966 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 6 Established on December 14, 1942 by 56 Stat. 1050 Waller 1943 – 1950 Strum 1950 – 1954 W. Jones 1955 – 1966 Dyer 1966 – 1976 Fay 1976 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 7 Established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 Tuttle 1954 – 1968 Morgan 1968 – 1978 Kravitch 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 8 Established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Bell 1961 – 1976 J. Hill 1976 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 9 Established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Gewin 1961 – 1976 Vance 1977 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 10 Established as a temporary judgeship on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Made permanent on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Ainsworth 1966 – 1981 Davis 1983 – present

Seat 11 Established as a temporary judgeship on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Made permanent on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Goldberg 1966 – 1980 Williams 1980 – 1990 DeMoss 1991 – present

Seat 12 Established as a temporary judgeship on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Made permanent on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Simpson 1966 – 1975 Tjoflat 1975 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 13 Established as a temporary judgeship on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Made permanent on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Clayton 1967 – 1969 C. Clark 1969 – 1992 Dennis 1995 – present

Seat 14 Established on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Carswell 1969 – 1970 Roney 1970 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 15 Established on June 18, 1968 by 82 Stat. 184 Ingraham 1969 – 1973 Gee 1973 – 1991 Benavides 1994 – present

Seat 16 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 F. Johnson 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 17 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Anderson 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 18 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Hatchett 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 19 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Henderson 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 20 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 C. King 1979 – present

Seat 21 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Politz 1979 – 1999 Pickering 2004 – 2004

Seat 22 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Reavley 1979 – 1990 E. Garza 1991 – present

Seat 23 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 S. Johnson 1979 – 1991 Parker 1994 – 2002 Prado 2003 – present

Seat 24 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Tate 1979 – 1986 Duhé 1988 – 1999 Clement 2001 – present

Seat 25 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 T. Clark 1979 – 1981 Reassigned on October 1, 1981 to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit by 94 Stat. 1994

Seat 26 Established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Garwood 1981 – 1997 Owen 2005 – present

Seat 27 Established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 E. Jones 1985 – present

Seat 28 Established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Smith 1987 – present

Seat 29 Established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 Stewart 1994 – present

See also

• Federal judicial appointment history#Fifth Circuit

References

• "Standard Search (https://lawclerks.ao.uscourts.gov/web/jobSearch)." Federal Law Clerk Information System. Accessed on June 19, 2005.
  • source for the duty stations
• "U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (http://www.fjc.gov/history/home.nsf/usca_05_frm?OpenFrameSet)." Official website of the Federal Judicial Center. Accessed on June 19, 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 Fifth Circuit (http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/)
• Recent opinions from FindLaw (http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=5th&navby=year&year=recent)

Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page) 5th_Cir. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5th_Cir.) version history (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=5th_Cir.&action=history) GNU Free Documentation Lizenz (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_GNU_Free_Documentation_License) CC-by-sa (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/)

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