NATION 'S COURTS DIRECTORY - 2015 "Look Inside" features Basic Court Structure, Introduction, Federal and State Section Excerpts and Guide to the Courts: BASIC STRUCTURE OF UNITED STATES COURT SYSTEM Supreme Court of United States State Supreme Courts Court of Appeals for Intermediate U.S. Courts of Appeal the Federal Circuit Appellate Courts U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces U.S. Court of U.S. Court of U.S. District Courts Trial Courts or Courts Federal Claims International Trade U.S. Bankruptcy Courts of General Jurisdiction Courts of Limited U.S. Court of Tax Court Jurisdiction: Veterans Appeals Administrative Agencies: District, County or Federal Trade Commission, Municipal Court; Nat’l Labor Relations Board, Juvenile or Family etc. Court; Probate Court; Criminal Court State Court Organization Charts Plus State Supreme Court Justices and State Judiciary Websites Appear in the State Section of the Directory. Introduction to 2015 Edition of Nation's Courts Directory follows >>> Copyright 2014 WANT Publishing Co. INTRODUCTION 1 __________________________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION We are pleased to present the 2015 edition of Nation’s Courts Directory, featuring comprehensive listings of the nation’s federal, state and county courts, arranged for quick-and-easy reference. Note also our online service, Nation’s Courts Online (NationsCourts.com). Online and the directory taken together offer a unique service – access to the courts in print, computer, tablet and smartphone formats. Nation’s Courts Directory, published since 1975, is the nation’s #1 court reference, relied on by attorneys, librarians, paralegals, teachers and students, and all those interested in the courts and how they operate. Attorneys appreciate the comprehensive coverage and speedy access to the nation’s federal, state and county courts. Paralegals and support staff appreciate the supplementary material on the courts and their operation, including federal and state court organization charts and steps in the litigation process. Librarians and teachers and students appreciate the extensive explanatory content, including federal and state court organization charts, guide to how a case is litigated, differences between civil and criminal cases, statutory versus common law, glossary of legal terms and landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases, alternative dispute resolution, technology of the modern courtroom, and guide to teaching judicial history. Plus U.S. Supreme Court membership from 1789 to present. See “Guide to the Courts” section. Court Web Addresses Court Web addresses are included throughout. The Federal section of Nation’s Courts Directory provides websites for the federal courts (appellate, district, and bankruptcy); the State section provides state judiciary websites, which are found on the state court organization chart at the beginning of each State’s listing. The charts also include other useful information, such as state Supreme Court justices and clerks of court, state attorneys general and secretaries of state. Court websites are essential reference tools for dealing with the courts and learning about their functions and operation. Most court websites include sections not only for attorneys but for the general public as well, such as information on the court’s judges and tours of the court (including observing the court in session and meeting judges and court personnel). An example is the U.S. Supreme Court’s website: www.supremecourt.gov. This site, in addition to listing recent decisions and schedule of cases to be argued before the Court, provides biographies of the Justices, a discussion of the Constitutional basis of the Court, and a guide for school groups that may wish to visit. Federal, State & Special Sections The Federal Section of Nation’s Courts Directory includes: names, addresses and phone numbers of all U.S. appellate and district judges and clerks of court, U.S. magistrate judges and U.S. bankruptcy judges and clerks, U.S. Attorneys for each federal district, court vacancies and nominations to fill those vacancies, and U.S. district court and bankruptcy court websites. The State Section includes: names, addresses and phone numbers of court clerks for each state's appellate and county courts. Also included are offices of vital statistics, state attorneys general and secretaries of state. For each state, a court organization chart is included, along with court contact listings. Special Sections include: state court organization charts (including state Supreme Court justices and state judiciary websites), a guide to the U.S. court system and how a case is litigated, a glossary of legal terms and landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions, alternative dispute resolution (as a means of avoiding litigation), differences between civil and criminal cases, statutory versus common law, guide to teaching judicial history, and a listing all U.S. Supreme Court Justices, from those appointed by President George Washington to present. Additional explanatory material included throughout. 2 INTRODUCTION __________________________________________________________________________________________ Federal - State Judicial Systems There are basically two sets of judicial systems in the United States. One set is that of the state and local courts established in each of the 50 states under the authority of that particular state's constitution and statutory law. The other is that of the federal courts, established by the U.S. Congress, pursuant to authority vested in it by the Constitution. This dual, Federal-State, structure is a distinguishing feature of our American judicial system. (See “Guide to the Courts” section for further discussion.) While cases at the federal level tend to get more attention, most litigation in fact takes place at the State level. In addition to court records, the state courts and county courthouses are treasure-troves of other vital information as well, from property and tax records to probate files. Although there are differences from state to state, each state court system is typically composed of a Supreme Court (appeals from which are to the U.S. Supreme Court), an appellate court, a trial court of general jurisdiction, and various courts of limited jurisdiction. See Chart on Inside Front Cover. General and Limited Jurisdiction The phrase “trial court of general jurisdiction” basically means the court hears both civil and criminal cases and that its decisions are reported--that is, published--in written or online formats. Courts of “limited jurisdiction,” on the other hand, are courts specializing in a particular area of the law, such as probate courts (wills and estates) or family courts, or those courts whose jurisdiction is limited to claims not exceeding a certain dollar amount, such as municipal and small claims courts. Courts of general jurisdiction usually allow trial by jury; courts of limited jurisdiction typically involve a hearing before a judge or magistrate. Courts of limited jurisdiction decisions generally are not reported and can usually be appealed to the state’s trial court of general jurisdiction, and from there to the appellate court and hence to the state supreme court. In addition to its federal and state court listings, Nation’s Courts Directory provides contact information for each county courthouse in the nation. In most instances, this information includes listings for both the clerk of court for the trial court in that county and the county clerk (see below). In some states the same person holds both positions; in other states they are separate positions. The clerk of the trial court is generally an appointive office, while the county clerk position is usually an elective one. The clerk of the trial court is the keeper of the records for that particular court, and any inquiries concerning decisions handed down by the court or the court calendar should be directed to the clerk of court’s office. The county clerk typically is responsible for such record-keeping functions as the recording of deeds and other property interests (liens), tax assessment and collection, and probate matters. In a number of states the county clerk assigns the recording of property interests to a recorder of deeds, also called a registrar of deeds. While most county courts collect birth, marriage, death, and divorce records, the best source for obtaining such records is through the state’s office of vital statistics (see state court organization charts for vital statistics contact information). Guide to the Courts For basic commentary on the courts and their operation, see “Guide to the Courts” section of this directory, which includes a discussion of how a case is litigated, differences between civil and criminal cases, a glossary of terms and landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Plus a guide to teaching judicial history. Also included is a list of U.S. Supreme Court Justices from 1789 to present, giving President who appointed each Justice and the Justice’s term of service on the Court. Additional explanatory material on the courts is included throughout the directory. For biographical information on U.S. Supreme Court Justices (and other federal judges, past and present), see Nation’s Courts Online (NationsCourts.com). FEDERAL SECTION - U.S. DISTRICT COURTS 21 __________________________________________________________________________________________ UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTS The 94 U.S. district courts around the country (including such courts in Puerto Rico,