Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals At A Glance

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, or 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, is formally known as the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. When referred to in a case citation, the Court is cited as the "9th Cir." Regardless of which of the many names for the court are used, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is the United States Federal Court that is granted appellate jurisdiction for the Federal district courts in:

The District of Alaska,

The District of Arizona,

The Northern District of California,

The Eastern District of California,

The Southern District of California,

The Central District of California,

The District of Hawaii,

The District of Idaho,

The District of Montana,

The District of Nevada,

The District of Oregon,

The Western District of Washington, and

The Eastern District of Washington.

In addition, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has been granted appellate jurisdiction over the territorial courts in the District Court of Guam and the District of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Although the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has its headquarters in San Francisco, the regular meeting places of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals include Seattle's William K. Nakamura Courthouse, Portland's Pioneer Courthouse, San Francisco’s James R. Browning U.S. Court of Appeals Building, and Pasadena's Richard H. Chambers U.S. Court of Appeals. In addition to these four courthouses, panels of the Court may move throughout its jurisdiction to hear cases in other locations.

Even though the judges are required to move throughout the Ninth Circuit, Court of Appeals hearings are scheduled in locations that are as close to the original jurisdiction as possible in order to reduce the time and cost of travel incurred by lawyers who must present cases to the 9th Court of Appeals in person.