Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act of 2000

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals 
Reorganization Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. NUMBER AND COMPOSITION OF CIRCUITS.

    Section 41 of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in the matter before the table, by striking 
        ``thirteen'' and inserting ``fourteen''; and
            (2) in the table--
                    (A) by striking the item relating to the ninth 
                circuit and inserting the following:

    ``Ninth........................
                                        Arizona, California, Nevada.'';
    and
                    (B) by inserting between the last 2 items the 
                following:

    ``Twelfth......................
                                        Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, 
                                                Montana, Northern 
                                                Mariana Islands, 
                                                Oregon, Washington.''.

SEC. 3. NUMBER OF CIRCUIT JUDGES.

    The table in section 44(a) of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by striking the item relating to the ninth circuit and 
        inserting the following:

``Ninth.....................................................      20'';
    and
            (2) by inserting between the last 2 items the following:

``Twelfth...................................................       8''.

SEC. 4. PLACES OF CIRCUIT COURT.

    The table in section 48(a) of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by striking the item relating to the ninth circuit and 
        inserting the following:

    ``Ninth........................
                                        San Francisco, Los Angeles.'';
    and
            (2) by inserting between the last 2 items at the end the 
        following:

    ``Twelfth......................
                                        Portland, Seattle.''.

SEC. 5. ASSIGNMENT OF CIRCUIT JUDGES.

    Each circuit judge in regular active service of the former ninth 
circuit whose official station on the day before the effective date of 
this Act--
            (1) is in Arizona, California, or Nevada is assigned as a 
        circuit judge of the new ninth circuit; and
            (2) is in Alaska, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Northern 
        Mariana Islands, Oregon, or Washington is assigned as a circuit 
        judge of the twelfth circuit.

SEC. 6. ELECTION OF ASSIGNMENT BY SENIOR JUDGES.

    Each judge who is a senior judge of the former ninth circuit on the 
day before the effective date of this Act may elect to be assigned to 
the new ninth circuit or to the twelfth circuit and shall notify the 
Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts of 
such election.

SEC. 7. SENIORITY OF JUDGES.

    The seniority of each judge--
            (1) who is assigned under section 5 of this Act; or
            (2) who elects to be assigned under section 6 of this Act;
shall run from the date of commission of such judge as a judge of the 
former ninth circuit.

SEC. 8. APPLICATION TO CASES.

    The provisions of the following paragraphs of this section apply to 
any case in which, on the day before the effective date of this Act, an 
appeal or other proceeding has been filed with the former ninth 
circuit:
            (1) If the matter has been submitted for decision, further 
        proceedings in respect of the matter shall be had in the same 
        manner and with the same effect as if this Act had not been 
        enacted.
            (2) If the matter has not been submitted for decision, the 
        appeal or proceeding, together with the original papers, 
        printed records, and record entries duly certified, shall, by 
        appropriate orders, be transferred to the court to which the 
        matter would have been submitted had this Act been in full 
        force and effect at the time such appeal was taken or other 
        proceeding commenced, and further proceedings in respect of the 
        case shall be had in the same manner and with the same effect 
        as if the appeal or other proceeding had been filed in such 
        court.
            (3) A petition for rehearing or a petition for rehearing en 
        banc in a matter decided before the effective date of this Act, 
        or submitted before the effective date of this Act and decided 
        on or after the effective date as provided in paragraph (1), 
        shall be treated in the same manner and with the same effect as 
        though this Act had not been enacted. If a petition for 
        rehearing en banc is granted, the matter shall be reheard by a 
        court comprised as though this Act had not been enacted.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the term--
            (1) ``former ninth circuit'' means the ninth judicial 
        circuit of the United States as in existence on the day before 
        the effective date of this Act;
            (2) ``new ninth circuit'' means the ninth judicial circuit 
        of the United States established by the amendment made by 
        section 2(2); and
            (3) ``twelfth circuit'' means the twelfth judicial circuit 
        of the United States established by the amendment made by 
        section 2(3).

SEC. 10. ADMINISTRATION.

    The court of appeals for the ninth circuit as constituted on the 
day before the effective date of this Act may take such administrative 
action as may be required to carry out this Act and the amendments made 
by this Act. Such court shall cease to exist for administrative 
purposes on July 1, 2002.

SEC. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall become effective 
on October 1, 2000.
                                     





                                                       

Summary: Assigns circuit judges of the former ninth circuit to either of the two new circuits based upon their official station, with senior judges permitted election of assignment.