The United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois (in case citations, S.D. Ill.) is a Federal district court covering approximately the southern half of the state of Illinois.
Appeals from the Southern District of Illinois are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
It has three courthouses, at Benton, Cairo and East St. Louis. At present, four judges are assigned to this district.
Video United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
History
The United States District Court for the District of Illinois was established by a statute passed by the United States Congress on March 3, 1819, 3 Stat. 502. The act established a single office for a judge to preside over the court. Initially, the court was not within any existing judicial circuit, so the district court exercised the jurisdiction of both a district court and a circuit court, with appeals and writs of error taken directly to the United States Supreme Court. In 1837, Congress placed the District of Illinois within the newly created Seventh Circuit, and the district court resumed its normal jurisdiction, 5 Stat. 176.
The Southern District itself was created by a statute passed on February 13, 1855, 10 Stat. 606, which subdivided the District of Illinois into the Northern and the Southern Districts. The boundaries of the District and the seats of the courts were set forth in the statute:
The district has since been re-organized several times. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois was created on March 3, 1905 by 33 Stat. 992, by splitting counties out of the Northern and Southern Districts. It was later eliminated in a reorganization on October 2, 1978 which replaced it with a Central District, 92 Stat. 883, formed primarily from parts of the Southern District, and returning some counties to the Northern District.
Maps United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
Jurisdiction
The jurisdiction of the Southern District of Illinois comprises the following counties: Alexander, Bond, Calhoun, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Crawford, Cumberland, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jersey, Johnson, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Massac, Monroe, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Richland, Saline, St. Clair, Union, Wabash, Washington, Wayne, White, and Williamson. The district was created in 1979. It has jurisdiction over the eastern suburbs of St. Louis and the city of Carbondale.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. The current interim United States Attorney is Donald S. Boyce, Jr..
Current Judges
Vacancies and pending nominations
Former judges
Chief judges
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, 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 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.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was 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. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.
Succession of seats
See also
- Courts of Illinois
- List of United States federal courthouses in Illinois
Notes
External links
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois Official Website
- United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois Official Website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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