Answer:
The U.S. Federal Court system is divided into eleven circuits or areas covering various states plus additional ones for the District of Columbia and Federal issues.
US Courts of Appeals
1st - ME, MA, NH, PR, RI
2nd - NY, VT, CT
3rd - PA, NJ, DE, VI
4th - MD, NC, SC, VA, WV
5th - LA, TX, MS
6th - MI, OH, KY TN
7th - IL, IN, WI 8th - ND, SD, MN, NE, IA, MO AR
9th - CA, OR, WA, AZ, MT, ID, NV, AK, HI
10th - CO, KS, NM, OK, UT, WY
11th - AL, GA, FL
DC - DC, Tax Court, fed admin agencies.
Federal Patent, Int'l Trade, Claims Court and Veterans' Appeals.
Texas is located in the 5th Circuit along with Louisiana and Mississippi. The Circuit Courts of Appeal hear cases that are appealed from decisions in lower Federal courts in their respective circuits.
The decision of a Circuit Court of Appeal is the law in the states in its circuit. If a Circuit Court of Appeal has not decided a particular issue, attorneys view decisions from other circuits as indications of what the court may decide if the same or similar issues are raise in a lawsuit.
For example, a decision from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is not the law in Texas but if the 5th Circuit Court has not decided the issue, the 9th Circuit decision provides guidance as to what the law may be in the 5th Circuit.
NOTE The Circuit Courts often do not agree on a particular rule of law. This is know as a "split" in the courts and in many instances leads to cases being presented to the U.S. Supreme Court. A decision of the Supreme Court is the law of the land and effective in all states. Here is a link to information regarding the respective Federal Courts.
First published on BankersOnline.com 7/1/02
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