United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit

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United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
(1st Cir.)
Seal of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.svg
1st Circuit map.svg
Location John Joseph Moakley U.S. Courthouse
(Boston, Massachusetts)
Appeals from
EstablishedJune 16, 1891
Judges6
Circuit Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson
Chief Judge David J. Barron
www.ca1.uscourts.gov

The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:

Contents

The court is based at the John Joseph Moakley Federal Courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts. Most sittings are held in Boston, where the court usually sits for one week most months of the year; in one of July or August, it takes a summer break and does not sit. The First Circuit also sits for one week each March and November at the Jose V. Toledo Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, and occasionally sits at other locations within the circuit. [1]

With six active judges and four active senior judges, the First Circuit has the fewest judges of any of the thirteen United States courts of appeals. It covers most of New England, as well as Puerto Rico. Following his retirement from the Supreme Court in 2009, Associate Justice David Souter occasionally sat on the First Circuit by designation. Former justice Stephen Breyer began to do so in 2025. [2]

Current composition of the court

As of February 22,2025:

#TitleJudgeDuty stationBornTerm of serviceAppointed by
Active Chief Senior
32Chief Judge David J. Barron Boston, MA 19672014–present2022–present— Obama
33Circuit Judge Gustavo Gelpí San Juan, PR 19652021–present—— Biden
34Circuit Judge Lara Montecalvo Providence, RI 19742022–present—— Biden
35Circuit Judge Julie Rikelman Boston, MA 19722023–present—— Biden
36Circuit Judge Seth Aframe Concord, NH 19742024–present—— Biden
37Circuit Judgevacant——————
18Senior Circuit Judge Levin H. Campbell inactive19271972–19921983–19901992–present Nixon
27Senior Circuit Judge Sandra Lynch Boston, MA 19461995–20222008–20152022–present Clinton
28Senior Circuit Judge Kermit Lipez Portland, ME 19411998–2011—2011–present Clinton
29Senior Circuit Judge Jeffrey R. Howard Concord, NH 19552002–20222015–20222022–present G.W. Bush
30Senior Circuit Judge O. Rogeriee Thompson Providence, RI 19512010–2022—2022–present Obama
31Senior Circuit Judge William J. Kayatta Jr. Portland, ME 19532013–2024—2024–present Obama

Vacancies and pending nominations

SeatPrior judge's duty stationSeat last held byVacancy reasonDate of vacancyNomineeDate of nomination
3 Portland, ME William J. Kayatta Jr. Senior status October 31, 2024 Joshua Dunlap July 15, 2025 [3]

List of former judges

#JudgeStateBorn–diedActive service Chief Judge Senior status Appointed byReason for
termination
1 LeBaron B. Colt RI 1846–19241891–1913 [Note 1] —— Arthur / Operation of law resignation
2 William LeBaron Putnam ME 1835–19181892–1917—— B. Harrison retirement
3 Francis Cabot Lowell MA 1855–19111905–1911—— T. Roosevelt death
4 William Schofield MA 1857–19121911–1912—— Taft death
5 Frederic Dodge MA 1847–19271912–1918—— Taft resignation
6 George Hutchins Bingham NH 1864–19491913–1939—1939–1949 Wilson death
7 Charles Fletcher Johnson ME 1859–19301917–1929—1929–1930 Wilson death
8 George W. Anderson MA 1861–19381918–1931—1931–1938 Wilson death
9 Scott Wilson ME 1870–19421929–1940—1940–1942 Hoover death
10 James Madison Morton Jr. MA 1869–19401932–1939—1939–1940 Hoover death
11 Calvert Magruder MA 1893–19681939–19591948–19591959–1968 F. Roosevelt death
12 John Christopher Mahoney RI 1882–19521940–1950—1950–1952 F. Roosevelt death
13 Peter Woodbury NH 1899–19701941–19641959–19641964–1970 F. Roosevelt death
14 John Patrick Hartigan RI 1887–19681950–1965—1965–1968 Truman death
15 Bailey Aldrich MA 1907–20021959–19721965–19721972–2002 Eisenhower death
16 Edward McEntee RI 1906–19811965–1976—1976–1981 L. Johnson death
17 Frank M. Coffin ME 1919–20091965–19891972–19831989–2009 L. Johnson death
19 Hugh H. Bownes NH 1920–20031977–1990—1990–2003 Carter death
20 Stephen Breyer MA 1938–present1980–19941990–1994— Carter elevation to Supreme Court
21 Juan R. Torruella PR 1933–20201984–20201994–2001— Reagan death
22 Bruce M. Selya RI 1934–20251986–2006—2006–2025 Reagan death
23 Conrad K. Cyr ME 1931–20161989–1997—1997–2016 G.H.W. Bush death
24 David Souter NH 1939–20251990—— G.H.W. Bush elevation to Supreme Court
25 Michael Boudin MA 1939–20251992–20132001–20082013–2021 G.H.W. Bush retirement
26 Norman H. Stahl NH 1931–20231992–2001—2001–2023 G.H.W. Bush death
  1. ↑ Colt was appointed as a circuit judge for the First Circuit in 1884 by Chester A. Arthur. The Judiciary Act of 1891 reassigned his seat to what is now the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Chief judges

Chief Judge
Magruder 1948–1959
Woodbury 1959–1964
Aldrich 1965–1972
Coffin 1972–1983
Campbell 1983–1990
Breyer 1990–1994
Torruella 1994–2001
Boudin 2001–2008
Lynch 2008–2015
Howard 2015–2022
Barron 2022–present

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their circuits, and preside over any panel on which they serve, unless the circuit justice (the Supreme Court justice responsible for the circuit) is also on the panel. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the circuit 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, with seniority determined first by commission date, then by age. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. If no judge qualifies to be chief, the youngest judge over the age of 65 who has served on the court for at least one year shall act as chief until another judge qualifies. If no judge has served on the court for more than a year, the most senior judge shall act as chief. Judges can forfeit or resign their chief judgeship or acting chief judgeship while retaining their active status as a circuit judge. [4]

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. [5]

Succession of seats

The court has six seats for active judges, numbered in the order in which they were initially filled. Judges who assume senior status enter a kind of retirement in which they remain on the bench but vacate their seats, thus allowing the U.S. President to appoint new judges to fill their seats.

Notable decisions

See also

References

Specific
  1. ↑ "Court Calendar". United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Retrieved October 26, 2012. In January through June, and October through December, the Court usually sits for one week starting on the first Monday of the month. In either July or August, the court sits for one week. In September, the Court starts on the Wednesday after Labor Day and sits for the 3 days in that week and the 5 days in the following week. In November and March the court sits two weeks, with one week in Boston and one week in Puerto Rico. Court sittings are held in the morning, typically between 9:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
  2. ↑ Raymond, Nate (April 6, 2024). "Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Breyer to hear cases on appeals court". Reuters. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  3. ↑ "PN400-1 - Nomination of Joshua D. Dunlap for The Judiciary, 119th Congress (2025-2026)". www.congress.gov. July 15, 2025.
  4. ↑ 28 U.S.C.   § 45
  5. ↑ 62  Stat.   871, 72  Stat.   497, 96  Stat.   51
General
  • Dargo, George (1993). A History of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit: Volume I, 1891–1960.
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