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Amends the table contained in 28 U.S.C. 48(a) by striking the item relating to the Ninth Circuit and inserting a replacement item, and by inserting a new item after the item relating to the Eleventh Circuit.
Amends the table in section 44(a) of title 28 by striking the item relating to the Ninth Circuit and inserting a replacement item, and by inserting a new item after the item relating to the Eleventh Circuit.
Amends the matter preceding the table in 28 U.S.C. 41 by striking 'thirteen' and inserting 'fourteen'.
Splits the existing Ninth Circuit into two separate federal circuits, creates a new Twelfth Circuit, reassigns judges by their current duty stations, adds two new judgeships, updates statutory circuit tables, and permits spending for facilities and administrative steps to implement the change. Most changes take effect one year after enactment, with the two new judgeships effective on enactment and a two‑year administrative transition for winding down the former Ninth Circuit. The bill preserves dispositions for already‑submitted appeals, transfers unresolved records to the appropriate successor court, lets senior judges choose which successor circuit to join, and directs statutory edits to Title 28 to reflect fourteen circuits instead of thirteen.
For any case that had been submitted for decision before the effective date, further proceedings must continue in the same way and with the same effect as if this Act had not been enacted.
For any case that had not been submitted for decision before the effective date, the appeal or proceeding and the certified original papers and records must be transferred by appropriate orders to the court that would have received the matter if the Act had already been in effect, and further proceedings must continue there as if the appeal had originally been filed in that court.
A petition for rehearing or a petition for rehearing en banc in a matter decided before the effective date, or submitted before the effective date and decided on or after the effective date as described above, must be treated as though the Act had not been enacted. If a rehearing en banc is granted, the matter must be reheard by a court composed as it would have been if the Act had not been enacted.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit as constituted on the day before the effective date of this Act may take any administrative action required to carry out this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit shall cease to exist for administrative purposes upon the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the effective date of this Act.
Primary impacts:
Federal judges and court staff: Active judges are reassigned automatically by duty station; senior judges choose which successor circuit to join. Court administrative staff and clerks will face organizational and personnel transitions as offices and case management systems are realigned. Two new judgeships increase judicial capacity in the affected region.
Litigants and attorneys: Pending appeals already submitted for decision are not disturbed; other pending matters will move to a different appellate court depending on geographic allocation, which can change where oral arguments occur and which panels hear appeals. Transfer of records introduces administrative steps and potential short delays.
State and local communities: States and territories reassigned between circuits (e.g., some states remain in the new Ninth; others move to the Twelfth) may see changes in where appellate hearings are held and which judicial panels interpret federal law for their residents. New or upgraded court facilities may be needed in particular locations, with local economic and logistical effects.
Federal judiciary and operations: The Administrative Office and the existing Ninth Circuit will perform transition tasks, including statutory updates and case transfers. The two‑year administrative wind‑down period concentrates transition duties and may require temporary funding and facility adjustments.
Uncertainties and administrative details:
Broader implications:
Expand sections to see detailed analysis
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced July 21, 2025 by Michael Dean Crapo · Last progress July 21, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in Senate