Senate-Passed Bill on Judgeships Aims to Help Overworked Courts

Bipartisan legislation passed by the Senate to make all existing temporary trial court judgeships permanent amid judicial staffing concerns would help stabilize the judiciary in several states, lawmakers supporting the bill said.

The measure, introduced by Judiciary Committee members Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and passed via voice vote Saturday, would convert the 10 temporary judgeships at federal district courts into permanent positions.

Those judgeships have all been authorized for decades, but they must be continuously renewed by Congress for those courts to maintain the positions.

Passage comes amid congressional gridlock over proposals to go a step further and create entirely new judgeships at understaffed courts.

Last year, the Judicial Conference, the judiciary’s policy-making arm, asked Congress for 68 new permanent judgeships, including two at the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and 66 at federal trial courts.

Courts with temporary positions that would be made permanent under the Senate-passed bill include venues in Hawaii, which saw a 13% increase in civil cases filed in 2023, and the Eastern District of Texas, a known patent venue that saw roughly 7% more civil cases filed last year, according to latest data posted by the judiciary.

Alabama, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, and North Carolina also have courts staffed with temporary judgeships that would be made permanent under the bill.

It’s unclear if the measure will be taken up in the Republican-controlled House where Reps. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) and Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) have introduced a companion version. That bill has the support of Reps. Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas) and Deborah Ross (D-N.C.).

Cruz said in a statement on Monday the Senate bill “will ensure every resident in the Lone Star State maintains access to federal courts.”

“It will prevent the loss of judgeships Americans rely on, stabilize the structure of the federal judiciary, and strengthen the rule of law by reinforcing the independence of federal judges,” Cruz said. “I am hopeful it will now advance through the House expeditiously and become law.”

Hirono said in a statement that the bill “will help provide certainty and stability” in Hawaii and in other states.