Judiciary Act of 1891

E6726

The Judiciary Act of 1891 was a landmark U.S. federal statute that created the intermediate federal courts of appeals, significantly restructuring the federal judiciary and reducing the Supreme Court’s mandatory caseload.

Aliases (1)

Statements (42)
Predicate Object
instanceOf United States federal statute
judicial reform law
affectedInstitution Supreme Court of the United States
alsoKnownAs Evarts Act
appliesToJurisdiction federal judiciary of the United States
branchAffected judicial branch of the United States government
changedAppealRoute from district courts to courts of appeals instead of directly to the Supreme Court in many cases
codifiedIn 28 U.S. Code (as later revised and reorganized)
country United States
createdCourt United States circuit courts of appeals
United States courts of appeals
createdLevelOfCourt intermediate appellate courts
dateEnacted March 3, 1891
effectOnSupremeCourt expanded discretionary review through writs of certiorari
reduced mandatory appeals to the Supreme Court
enactedBy United States Congress
governs appeals from United States district courts
appeals from certain administrative and specialized tribunals
historicalSignificance first major reorganization of federal appellate courts since the Judiciary Act of 1789
marked the beginning of the modern three-tier federal court system
inForce yes
introducedIntermediateLevel between district courts and the Supreme Court
legalDomain federal courts and procedure
legislativeChamberOfOrigin United States Senate
longTermImpact contributed to the development of uniform federal law through regional courts of appeals
enabled the Supreme Court to focus on cases of national importance
namedAfter William M. Evarts
numberOfCourtsCreated 9
precededBy Judiciary Act of 1789
primaryPurpose to create intermediate federal appellate courts
to reduce the mandatory appellate caseload of the Supreme Court of the United States
providedFor finality of certain decisions in the courts of appeals
reducedDirectAppealsFrom United States district courts to the Supreme Court
restructured federal appellate jurisdiction
scope nationwide within the United States
shortDescription Act creating the United States courts of appeals and restructuring federal appellate jurisdiction
signedBy Benjamin Harrison
sponsor William M. Evarts
transferredJurisdictionFrom United States circuit courts
transferredJurisdictionTo United States courts of appeals
typeOfChange structural reform of court system
yearEnacted 1891


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