Federal court vacancy articles

The NLJ has Where May Vacancies for Trump Arise? These GOP-Appointed Circuit Judges Qualify for Senior Status -- Recent research supports the idea that ideology plays a role in judges' "strategically retiring," meaning leaving the bench when the party of the president who appointed them controls the White House.

• Federal judges qualify for senior status "if they are at least 65 years old and have served at least 15 years on the bench, or any combination of age and years of service thereafter that equals 80"
• "Regardless of age, judges must serve at least 10 years to qualify for senior status," a form of semiretirement that creates a vacancy on the court
• There are 25 active Republican-appointed [appellate] judges and 13 active Democratic-appointed judges eligible to take senior status based on their age and years of service who have not done so
• Trump could significantly shift the makeup of the liberal Ninth Circuit if he gets an opportunity to replace just one Democratic-appointed judge on the court.
• There are three [Democrat-appointed] Ninth Circuit judges who currently meet the requirements to take senior status: Ronald Gould, Johnnie Rawlinson and Kim Wardlaw.
• And three 9th Cir. GOP-appointed judges eligible to take senior status now are: Judge Consuelo Callahan, appointed by George W. Bush, eligible since 2017; Judge Sandra Ikuta, appointed by George W. Bush, eligible since May 2020; Judge Milan Smith, appointed by George W. Bush, eligible since 2016.

Law360 has GOP Will Get A Crack At The Judiciary, But First, Lame Duck

• There are currently 28 nominees pending, including 17 picked to fill 47 vacant judicial seats and 11 others selected to replace judges who've given their notice that they're taking partial or full retirement.
• Biden has secured confirmation of 44 circuit court nominees, 166 district court picks and one U.S. Supreme Court justice. Trump during his first term managed to win confirmation for 54 circuit and 174 district judges and three Supreme Court justices.

Bloomberg Law has New Fifth Circuit Judges Possible for Trump, Big Cases to Shift

• The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit may be cemented as an ultra-conservative powerhouse during President-elect Donald Trump’s second term, even as it’s unlikely to hear the kinds of high-profile policy challenges that it did during the Biden administration. Six of the court’s 17 active judges are eligible to step back from the bench, and four of them were nominated by Republican presidents.

The NLJ has 'Rapidly Closing Window': Progressive Groups Urge Senate Votes on Biden's Judicial Nominees