United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois

Southern District of Illinois
Seventh Circuit
Judgeships
Posts: 4
Judges: 4
Vacancies: 0
Judges
Chief: Nancy J. Rosenstengel
Active judges: David Wayne Dugan, Stephen Patrick McGlynn, Nancy J. Rosenstengel, Staci Michelle Yandle Senior judges: John Gilbert

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois is one of 94 United States district courts. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit based in Chicago at the Everett M. Dirksen Federal Courthouse and Building.

Vacancies

See also: Current federal judicial vacancies

There are no current vacancies on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, out of the court's four judicial positions.

Pending nominations

There are no pending nominees for this court.

Active judges

Article III judges

Judge	Appointed By	Assumed Office	Bachelors	Law
Nancy J. Rosenstengel	Barack Obama (D)	May 12, 2014 -	University of Illinois, 1990	Southern Illinois University Law School, 1993
Staci Michelle Yandle	Barack Obama (D)	June 19, 2014 -	University of Illinois, 1983	Vanderbilt University Law School, 1987
Stephen Patrick McGlynn	Donald Trump (R)	September 18, 2020 -	University of Dayton, 1983	St. Louis University School of Law, 1987
David Wayne Dugan	Donald Trump (R)	September 23, 2020 -	Eastern Illinois University, 1982	Valparaiso University, 1985

Active Article III judges by appointing political party

The list below displays the number of active judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.

• Democrat appointed: 2
• Republican appointed: 2

Senior judges

Judge	Appointed By	Assumed Office	Bachelors	Law
John Gilbert	George H.W. Bush (R)	March 15, 2014 -	University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 1971	Loyola University, Chicago School of Law, 1974

Senior judges by appointing political party

The list below displays the number of senior judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.

• Democrat appointed: 0
• Republican appointed: 1

Magistrate judges

Federal magistrate judges are federal judges who serve in United States district courts, but they are not appointed by the president and they do not serve life terms. Magistrate judges are assigned duties by the district judges in the district in which they serve. They may preside over most phases of federal proceedings, except for criminal felony trials. The specific duties of a magistrate judge vary from district to district, but the responsibilities always include handling matters that would otherwise be on the dockets of the district judges. Full-time magistrate judges serve for renewable terms of eight years. Some federal district courts have part-time magistrate judges, who serve for renewable terms of four years.

Judge	Appointed By	Assumed Office	Bachelors	Law
Reona J. Daly	United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois	September 9, 2016 -	Illinois Wesleyan University	Southern Illinois University Law School
Mark Beatty	United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois	January 2, 2019 -
Gilbert Sison	United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois	January 5, 2019 -

Former chief judges

In order to qualify for the office of chief judge in an Article III circuit or district court, or on the United States Court of International Trade, a judge must be in active service and hold seniority over the court's commissioned judges who are 64 years of age or under, have served one year or more, and have not previously served as chief judge.

In the event that no judge on the court meets those qualifications, the youngest judge in regular active service aged 65 years or more and who has served as a judge for one year or more shall become chief judge. If no judge meets those qualifications, the judge holding seniority in active service who has not served as chief before shall become the chief judge.

The chief judge serves for a term of seven years until another judge becomes eligible to serve in the position. No judge is permitted to serve as chief judge after reaching the age of 70 years unless no other judge is qualified to serve.

Unlike the chief justice of the United States, a chief judge returns to active service after the expiration of their term and does not create a vacancy on the court by the fact of their promotion.

On the United States Court of Federal Claims, the chief judge is selected by the president of the United States. The judge must be less than 70 years of age. A chief may serve until they reach age 70 or until another judge is designated by the president as the new chief judge. If the president selects a new chief judge, the former chief judge may continue active service on the court for the remainder of their appointed term.

Michael Joseph Reagan - (2014-2019) David R. Herndon - (2007-2014) Patrick G. Murphy - (2000 - 2007) John Gilbert - (1993 - 2000) William Stiehl - (1992 - 1993) James Foreman - (1979 - 1992)

Robert Morgan - (1972 - 1979) Omer Poos - (1966 - 1972) Frederick Mercer - (1958 - 1966) Charles Guy Briggle - (1948 - 1958)

Former judges

For more information about the judges of the Southern District of Illinois, see former federal judges of the Southern District of Illinois.

Jurisdiction

The Counties of the Southern District of Illinois (click for larger map)

The Southern District of Illinois has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The jurisdiction of the Southern District of Illinois extends over the eastern suburbs of St. Louis and the city of Carbondale.

There are two court divisions, each covering the following counties:

The Benton Division, covering Alexander, Clark, Clay, Crawford, Cumberland, Edwards, Effingham, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Lawrence, Massac, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Richland, Saline, Union, Wabash, Wayne, White and Williamson counties.

The East St. Louis Division, covering Bond, Calhoun, Clinton, Fayette, Jersey, Madison, Marion, Monroe, Randolph, St. Clair and Washington counties.

Caseloads

This section contains court management statistics dating back to 2010. It was last updated in September 2024.

Click [show] below for more information on caseload terms and definitions.

Caseload statistics explanation
Term	Explanation
Cases filed and terminated	The number of civil and criminal lawsuits formally initiated or decided by the court in a calendar year. The chart below reflects the table columns Cases filed and Cases terminated.
Average time from filing to disposition	The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to date of disposition (acquittal, sentencing, dismissal, etc.). The chart below reflects the table columns Median time (Criminal) and Median time (Civil).
Starting case load	The number of cases pending from the previous calendar year.
Cases filed	The number of civil and criminal lawsuits formally initiated in a calendar year.
Cases terminated	The total number of civil and criminal lawsuits decided by the court in a calendar year.
Remaining cases	The number of civil and criminal cases pending at the end of a given year.
Median time (Criminal)	The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to the date of disposition. In criminal cases, the date of disposition occurs on the day of sentencing or acquittal/dismissal.
Median time (Civil)	The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to the date of disposition.
Three-year civil cases	The number and percent of civil cases that were filed more than three years before the end of the given calendar year.
Vacant posts	The number of months during the year an authorized judgeship was vacant.
Trial/Post	The number of trials completed divided by the number of authorized judgeships on the court. Trials include evidentiary trials, hearings on temporary restraining orders, and preliminary injunctions.
Source: United States Courts, "Explanation of the Judicial Caseload Profiles for United States District Courts," accessed September 25, 2018

United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois caseload stats, 2010-2023
Year	Cases Filed	Cases Terminated	Cases Pending	Number of Judgeships	Vacant Judgeship Months	Average Total Filings per Judgeship	Trials Completed per Judgeship	Median time from filing to disposition, criminal	Median time from filing to disposition, civil	Three-year civil cases (#)	Three-year civil cases (%)
2010	6,003	1,729	5,992	4	0	1,501	25	8	7	62	1
2011	5,446	2,023	9,360	4	0	1,362	26	8	8	47	1
2012	3,991	2,145	11,279	4	0	998	18	7	11	375	3
2013	4,831	2,676	13,433	4	1	1,208	20	8	19	3,933	30
2014	3,014	8,334	8,105	4	7	754	23	9	41	2,152	28
2015	1,983	6,063	4,025	4	0	496	19	10	22	1,485	40
2016	1,824	2,643	3,214	4	0	456	18	10	25	1,233	42
2017	1,924	2,637	2,494	4	0	481	13	10	39	583	26
2018	2,802	2,852	2,450	4	0	701	18	10	10	229	11
2019	1,953	1,946	2,454	4	21	488	19	9	9	285	14
2020	1,851	2,004	2,296	4	17	463	10	11	14	226	12
2021	2,267	1,834	2,726	4	0	567	28	14	8	246	11
2022	3,468	1,707	4,489	4	0	867	20	16	12	245	6
2023	4,453	2,048	6,888	4	0	1,113	19	17	10	206	3
Average	3,272	2,903	5,658	4	3	818	20	10	17	808	16

History

Illinois was established as one judicial district by Congress on March 3, 1819, with one post to cover the entire state. The district court was not yet assigned to a judicial circuit and was therefore granted the same jurisdiction as the United States circuit courts, excluding appeals and writs of error, which are the jurisdiction of the United States Supreme Court.

Congress repealed the circuit court jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court for the District of Illinois on March 3, 1837. Congress then established a United States circuit court within the district, and assigned it over to the Seventh Circuit.

Illinois divided into two judicial districts on February 13, 1855. The districts were known as the Northern District of Illinois and the Southern District of Illinois. One judgeship was assigned to each district and the District of Illinois was assigned over to the Northern District of Illinois.

Congress reorganized the circuits on July 15, 1862, and assigned Illinois to the Eighth Circuit and then to the Seventh Circuit on July 23, 1866.

The Eastern District of Illinois was established on March 3, 1905. One judgeship was authorized for the district court, as well as an additional judgeship to the Northern District of Illinois. Illinois was again reorganized into the Northern District of Illinois, the Central District of Illinois, and the Southern District of Illinois on October 2, 1978. Thirteen judgeships were assigned for the Northern District of Illinois, two for the Central District of Illinois, and two for the Southern District of Illinois. Over time two additional judicial posts were added for a total of four current posts.

Judicial posts

The following table highlights the development of judicial posts for the Southern District of Illinois:

Year	Statute	Total Seats
March 3, 1819	3 Stat. 502	1
February 13, 1855	10 Stat. 606	1
February 20, 1931	46 Stat. 1196	2
October 2, 1978	92 Stat. 883	2
March 30, 1979	93 Stat. 6	2
July 10, 1984	98 Stat. 333	3
November 2, 2002	116 Stat. 1758	4

Noteworthy cases

For a searchable list of opinions, please see Justia.com-Dockets and Filings-Southern District of Illinois.

Federal courthouse

Two separate courthouses serve the Southern District of Illinois, one in St. Louis and one in Benton.

About United States District Courts

The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. There are 94 such courts. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of both law and equity.

There is a United States bankruptcy court and a number of bankruptcy judges associated with each United States district court. Each federal judicial district has at least one courthouse, and most districts have more than one.

There is at least one judicial district for each state, and one each for Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. District courts in three insular areas—the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands—exercise the same jurisdiction as U.S. district courts. Despite their name, these courts are technically not District Courts of the United States. Judges on these territorial courts do not enjoy the protections of Article III of the Constitution, and serve terms of 10 years rather than for life.

There are 677 U.S. District Court judgeships.

The number of federal district judge positions is set by the U.S. Congress in Title 28 of the U.S. Code, Section 133, which authorizes a set number of judge positions, or judgeships, making changes and adjustments in these numbers from time to time.

In order to relieve the pressure of trying the hundreds of thousands of cases brought before the federal district courts each year, many trials are tried by juries, along with a presiding judge.

Appointments by president

The chart below shows the number of district court judges confirmed by the U.S. Senate through November 1 of the fourth year of each president's term in office. At this point in the term, President Bill Clinton had the most district court appointments with 169.

Judges by district

See also: Judicial vacancies in federal courts

The table below displays the number of judges in each district and indicates how many were appointed by presidents from each major political party. It also includes the number of vacancies in a district and how many pending nominations for that district are before the United States Senate. The table can be sorted by clicking the column headers above the line, and you can navigate through the pages by clicking the arrows at the top of the table. It is updated every Monday.

Judicial selection

The district courts are served by Article III federal judges who are appointed for life during "good behavior." They are usually first recommended by senators (or members of the House, occasionally). The President of the United States makes the appointments, which must then be confirmed by the U.S. Senate in accordance with Article III of the United States Constitution.

Step	A Candidacy Proceeds	A Candidacy Halts
1. Recommendation made by Congress Member to the President	President Nominates to Senate Judiciary Committee	President Declines Nomination
2. Senate Judiciary Committee interviews Candidate	Sends candidate to Senate for confirmation	Returns candidate to President, who may re-nominate to Committee
3. Senate votes on candidate confirmation	Candidate becomes federal judge	Candidate does not receive judgeship

Magistrate judges

The district courts are also served by magistrate judges. Congress created the judicial office of federal magistrate in 1968. In 1990, the position title was changed to magistrate judge. The chief judge of each district appoints one or more magistrate judges, who discharge many of the ancillary duties of district judges so judges can handle more trials. There are both full-time and part-time magistrate judge positions, and these positions are assigned to the district courts according to caseload criteria (subject to funding by Congress). A full-time magistrate judge serves a term of eight years; a part-time magistrate judge's term of office is four years.

See also

• United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit
• Central District of Illinois
• Northern District of Illinois
• Northern District of Indiana
• Southern District of Indiana
• Eastern District of Wisconsin
• Western District of Wisconsin

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Official Website of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
• Official Website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Illinois
• Judges of the Southern District of Illinois
• Opinions of the Southern District of Illinois