The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States District Courts:
- Western, Middle, and Eastern Districts of Louisiana
- Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi
- Western, Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of Texas
The court is based at the John Minor Wisdom U.S. Courthouse in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Prior to the creation of the Eleventh Circuit on October 14, 1980 under the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act , the Fifth Circuit also included Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Until March 31, 1982, the Fifth Circuit also had jurisdiction over the Panama Canal Zone.
Judges
The judges on the court are (as of December 16, 2004):
- Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King , Houston, Texas
- Circuit Judge E. Grady Jolly , Jackson, Mississippi
- Circuit Judge Patrick E. Higginbotham , Dallas, Texas
- Circuit Judge W. Eugene Davis , Lafayette, Louisiana
- Circuit Judge Edith H. Jones , Houston, Texas
- Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith , Houston, Texas
- Circuit Judge Jacques L. Wiener, Jr. , New Orleans, Louisiana
- Circuit Judge Rhesa H. Barksdale , Jackson, Mississippi
- Circuit Judge Emilio M. Garza, San Antonio, Texas
- Circuit Judge Harold R. DeMoss, Jr. , Houston, Texas
- Circuit Judge Fortunato P. Benavides , Austin, Texas
- Circuit Judge Carl E. Stewart, Shreveport, Louisiana
- Circuit Judge James L. Dennis , New Orleans, Louisiana
- Circuit Judge Edith Brown Clement , New Orleans, Louisiana
- Circuit Judge Edward Charles Prado , San Antonio, Texas
- Senior Circuit Judge Thomas Morrow Reavley , Austin, Texas
- Senior Circuit Judge William Lockhart Garwood , Austin, Texas
- Senior Circuit Judge John M. Duhé Jr. , Lafayette, Louisiana
(Here circuit judges and senior circuit judges are listed in order of seniority.)
Two judgeships are vacant.
The Fifth Circuit Four
During the late 1950s, Chief Judge Elbert Tuttle and his three colleagues John Minor Wisdom, John Brown, and Richard Rives became known as the "Fifth Circuit Four" (or simply "The Four") for decisions crucial in advancing the civil rights of African-Americans; in this they were opposed by Ben Cameron .
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