NCJ Number
83122
Date Published
1980
Length
468 pages
Annotation
Testimony is presented on proposed Federal legislation that will divide the fifth judicial circuit into two autonomous circuits.
Abstract
The fifth judicial circuit currently consists of six States -- Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia -- with a population likely to reach 40,000,000 in the current 1980 census. Proposed legislation would divide the court into autonomous circuits, with one circuit encompassing Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas and the other including Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. Testimony from representatives of the Justice Department; the judiciary, including judges of the fifth circuit; the American Bar Association; and the States composing the current fifth circuit supports the proposed division. The division is favored largely because of the tremendous increase in the amount and nature of the litigation filed annually with the court. Intracircuit conflicts are reported to occur regularly, requiring en banc consideration. With a 26-judge court, this is deemed to be a cumbersome and time-consuming means of resolving lawsuits. The workload on each judge is said to be affecting the quality of judicial decisions. The representative from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People opposes the division based on the view that time is needed to observe the impact of the enlarged judiciary at the district and appellate levels. Further, it is argued that the proposed division would substitute two new entities with unknown performance for the current high-quality court with a known and impressive record, particularly in the area of civil rights. Written statements are included.