Welcome to the June 9 edition of Robe & Gavel, Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S.
Your favorite federal courts newsletter is back, dear reader. And we’ve got a ton of updates for you. So grab a seat, and let’s gavel in!
Follow Ballotpedia on Twitter or subscribe to the Daily Brew for the latest news and analysis.
We #SCOTUS and you can, too!
Grants
SCOTUS has accepted eight new cases to its merits docket since our May 12 issue. To date, the court has agreed to hear 65 cases for the 2024-2025 term and 16 cases for its 2025-2026 term. By this time during the 2023-2024 term, SCOTUS had agreed to hear 62 cases.
Click the links below to learn more about these cases:
- Fernandez v. United States originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and concerns discretionary sentence reductions under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A).
- Bost v. Illinois State Board of Elections concerns Article III standing to challenge state
time, place, and manner regulations concerning federal elections. The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
- Case v. Montana originated from the Montana Supreme Court and concerns probable cause and the conditions in which police officers can enter homes without a search warrant.
- Hencely v. Fluor Corporation concerns the Federal Tort Claims Act. The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
- The GEO Group, Inc. v. Menocal concerns government contractors’ claim of derivative sovereign immunity. The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
- Coney Island Auto Parts Unlimited, Inc. v. Burton concerns Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(c)(1). The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
- Rutherford v. United States (consolidated with Carter v. United States) concerns the First Step Act’s prospective changes in sentencing law. The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
- Hamm v. Smith concerns the use of multiple IQ scores in assessing an Atkins claim. The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Opinions
SCOTUS has ruled on 11 cases since our May 12 edition. The court has issued rulings in 40 cases so far this term. By this time during the 2023-2024 term, SCOTUS had released 32 opinions.
Click the links below to read more about the specific cases SCOTUS ruled on since May 12:
May 15
May 16
May 22
May 29
June 5
- BLOM Bank SAL v. Honickman
- CC/Devas (Mauritius) Limited v. Antrix Corp. Ltd.
- Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission
- Smith & Wesson Brands v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos
- Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services
- Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings v. Davis
The Federal Vacancy Count
The Federal Vacancy Count tracks vacancies, nominations, and confirmations to all United States Article III federal courts in a one-month period. This month’s edition includes nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from May 2 to June 1.
Highlights
- Vacancies: There have been three new judicial vacancies since the May 1 report. There are 49 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions on courts covered in this report. Including the United States Court of Federal Claims and the United States territorial courts, 50 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
- Nominations: There were 11 new nominations since the June 1 report.
- Confirmations: There were no new confirmations since the June 1 report.
Vacancy count for June 1, 2025
A breakdown of the vacancies at each level can be found in the table below. For a more detailed look at the vacancies in the federal courts, click here.
*Though the United States territorial courts are named as district courts, they are not Article III courts. They are created in accordance with the power granted under Article IV of the U.S. Constitution. Click here for more information.
New vacancies
Three judges left active status since the previous vacancy count, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies. The president nominates individuals to fill Article III judicial position vacancies. Nominations are subject to U.S. Senate confirmation.
- Judge Nathaniel Gorton assumed senior status on the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- Judge Ricardo Hinojosa assumed senior status on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
- Judge Timothy Batten retired from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
The following chart tracks the number of vacancies in the United States Courts of Appeals from President Donald Trump’s (R) inauguration to the date indicated on the chart.
U.S. District Court vacancies
The following map shows the number of vacancies in the U.S. District Courts as of June 1.
New nominations
President Donald Trump (R) announced 11 new nominations since the previous report. Since May 1, 2025, the president announced his intent to nominate the following individuals:
- Zachary Bluestone, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
- Joshua Divine, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri
- Maria Lanahan, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
- Cristian M. Stevens, to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
- Ed Artau, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- John Guard, to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Kyle Dudek, to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe, to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Jordan Pratt, to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Emil Bove, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
The president has announced 12 Article III judicial nominations since taking office Jan. 20, 2025. For more information on the president’s judicial nominees, click here.
New confirmations
As of June 1, the Senate has not confirmed any of President Trump’s judicial nominees. To review a complete list of Trump’s confirmed nominees from both presidential terms, click here.
Comparison of Article III judicial appointments over time by presidents’ second term (1997-Present)
- Presidents have made an average of eight judicial appointments through June 1 of their first year in office.
- President Bill Clinton (D) made the most appointments through four years with 174. President George W. Bush (R) made the fewest through four years with 122.
- President Barack Obama (D) made the most appointments through two years with 134. President George W. Bush (R) made the fewest with 54.
- President Barack Obama (D) made the most appointments through one year in office with 45. President George W. Bush (D) made the fewest with 22.
Need a daily fix of judicial nomination, confirmation, and vacancy information? Click here for continuing updates on the status of all federal judicial nominees.
Or, keep an eye on this list for updates on federal judicial nominations.
Looking ahead
We’ll be back on July 7 with a new edition of Robe & Gavel. Until then, gaveling out!
Contributions
Myj Saintyl compiled and edited this newsletter, with contributions from Sam Post and Ellie Mikus.