Overview of the United States Federal Courts

Judge James B. Parsons and President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1966.
In 1961, Judge Parsons became the first African American
appointed as an Article III district court judge.
Judge Parsons presided for more than
thirty years before his retirement in 1992.

Article III of the United States Constitution established the United States Supreme Court and gave Congress the power to create the federal courts of appeals and district courts. Judges who serve on these courts are known as Article III Judges; they are nominated and appointed by the President of the United States, subject to confirmation by the Senate. Once appointed, Article III Judges enjoy two important constitutional protections. Article III provides that federal judges are appointed for life "during good behaviour" and earn "a compensation, which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office." Article III's guarantees of life-time positions and undiminishable salaries ensure that judges who serve on the federal courts of appeals or district courts are not subject to removal or reduced pay merely because they decide a case in a way that some people may not like; it also ensures that Article III Judges make decisions based solely on the rule of law.

Article I of the United States Constitution gave Congress the power to create magistrate judgeships, the bankruptcy court, and various legislative courts. Judges serving on these judicial bodies hold office for such terms as Congress prescribes. For example, bankruptcy judges are appointed for a fourteen-year term by the circuit court judges and hear matters that arise under the bankruptcy laws. Magistrate judges are appointed for eight years by the federal district judges. Magistrate judges assist district judges in preparing civil and criminal cases for trial and, when the parties agree, they also try civil cases.