APPENDIX 1 - COURT SUPPORT STAFFI
. 

This appendix discusses court support staffing for probation and pretrial offices, courts of appeals, and district and bankruptcy courts. It also includes workload used to help determine staffing requirements in the courts, and a program statement explaining the purpose of these programs.

Probation and Pretrial Services

Table A-1.1 Probation and Pretrial Services Workload Indicators1

2018 Actual 

(% Change 

from Previous 

Yr.) 2

2019 Actual 

(% Change 

from Previous 

Yr.) 2

2020 Projected 

(% Change 

from Previous 

Yr.) 3

183,587 181,174 182,500

-2.7% -1.3% 0.7%

43,997 46,539 48,400

0.0% 5.8% 4.0%

90,951 98,627 106,900

10.6% 8.4% 8.4%

60,498 66,622 72,200

-0.3% 10.1% 8.4%

Convicted Offenders Supervised in the CommunityCharged Defendants Supervised in the CommunityInvestigative Reports Completed for Bail DeterminationsInvestigative Reports Completed for Sentencing Determinations

1/For 2018 through 2020, the number of convicted persons and charged defendants supervised in the community reflects persons initially received for supervision, under supervision for the entire period, or under supervision at the start of the period and closed. Persons with cases that fall in more than one of these three categories are counted only once. 2/Actual data for 2018 and 2019 is based on the 12-month period ending June 30. 3/Estimates for 2020 are based on projections for the 12-month period ending June 30.

Probation and Pretrial Serv

Probation officers are federal law enforcprotect the community. They work with psupervision “post-conviction,” after they of a federal crime and after they are releatechniques grounded in social science resas evidence-based practices, probation ofunder supervision to assist them in becommembers of the community and leading cassess each offender’s risk of recidivism; factors that, when addressed, affect the inengage in future criminal activity; and appinterventions tailored to reduce risk. Thehelping persons under supervision to eithfor the first time, appropriate housing, emcommunity relationships. Officers also pcounseling and leverage programs offered agencies and local social service organiza

make sure that offenders comply with relecourt and address any issues that affect thThe officers monitor persons under supercalls and personal contacts and direct them offenders, including substance abuse or mmedical care, training, and employment aofficers, the court would not be able to mpersons under supervision pose to individ
by verifying their locations and employment, monitoring their associates, restricting their travel, and taking actions to make sure they obey the law. Pretrial services officers work with defendants after they are charged with federal crimes and while they are awaiting trial. They help ensure that defendants released to the community commit no crimes while awaiting trial and return to court as required. Both probation and pretrial services officers investigate defendants and persons under supervision for the court by gathering and verifying information about them. Their investigations include interviews with defendants and persons under supervision to find out about their backgrounds, including family, education, employment, finances, physical and mental health, and alcohol or drug abuse. Officers also perform criminal history record checks and interview other people who can provide helpful information, such as family members, employers, and law enforcement officials. They also review records, such as court, school, military, financial, and employment records. This information is used to produce a pretrial services report and presentence report. The pretrial services report recommends whether to release or detain the defendant before trial and addresses whether the defendant is likely to stay out of trouble and return to court as required. The presentence report recommends sentencing options under the federal sentencing guidelines, addresses the offense’s impact on the victim, and determines the offender’s ability to pay fines and restitution. It also recommends 

release conditions for the court to impose person under supervision’s movement and community. Release conditions are tailorexample, the court may require that the peget drug testing and treatment, find and kon location monitoring. As explained in the Salaries and ExpenseJustice prosecution activity as well as the implementation of the First Step Act has hon the workload of the probation and pret
Table A-1.2 Persons Under Supervision by Type of Supervision 

Year Probation Supervised Release Parole BOP Custody Total

ACTUAL1 2009 22,926 98,560 2,220 133 123,83

2010 22,707 101,701 2,089 145 126,642011 22,604 104,671 1,870 174 129,312012 22,419 108,528 1,664 174 132,782013 21,114 109,516 1,473 259 132,362014 19,903 111,076 1,373 245 132,592015 19,191 112,750 1,245 242 133,422016 18,275 118,318 1,140 149 137,882017 17,139 117,662 1,003 143 135,942018 15,740 114,278 920 98 131,032019 15,028 112,615 881 125 128,64

ESTIMATED2 2020 13,400 114,700 900 200 129,20

1Actual data for 2009 through 2019 is based on the 12-month periods ending June 30. 2Estimates for 2020 are based on projections for the 12-month period ending June 30. 
Table A-1.3 The Changing Supervision Population - Persons Under Supervision on Probation vs. Persons Under Released from Prison 

Year 

ACTUAL2 2009 22,926 19% 100,913 81% 

2010 22,707 18% 103,935 82% 2011 22,604 17% 106,715 83% 2012 22,419 17% 110,366 83% 2013 21,114 16% 111,248 84% 2014 19,903 15% 112,694 85% 2015 19,191 14% 114,237 86% 2016 18,275 13% 119,607 87% 2017 17,139 13% 118,808 87% 2018 15,740 12% 115,296 88% 2019 15,028 12% 113,621 88% 

ESTIMATED3 2020 13,400 10% 115,800 90% 

Offenders on Probation Offenders Released from Prison1

 1Includes terms of supervised release, parole, mandatory release, and military parole. 2Actual data for 2009 through 2019 is based on the 12-month periods ending June 30. 3Estimates for 2020 are based on projections for the 12-month period ending June 30. 
District Courts

Table A-1.4 Major District Court Workload Indicators1 

Filings 2018 Actual 2019 Actual 2020 Estimate

67,257 73,012 78,800

15.7% 8.6% 7.9%

84,828 90,541 95,100

12.8% 6.7% 5.0%

281,202 293,520 294,700

3.5% 4.4% 0.4%

Criminal Case FilingsCriminal Defendants FiledCivil Case Filings

1Data for each year is for the 12-month period ending June 30. 

District ClerksThe clerks’ offices are the public business offices for the district courts and provide specific centralized management in case-related and logistical areas. Employees in clerks’ offices perform essential functions necessary for the operation of the courts, such: 

 attorney admissions to practice in the district;  case intake, docketing of pleadings and motions;  service of process, events scheduling, receipting and 

accounting for fees and fines collected; 

 case tracking, provision of court re

interpreting services; 

 alternative dispute resolution prog statistical reporting, training attorn

management system (CM/ECF), a

 jury management. 

All of these functions are essential elemecriminal cases and resolving civil cases. sector entities rely on effective case proceoffices. 

The proper functioning of the district courenhances the efficiency of the offices of thMarshals Service, Federal Public DefendePretrial Services. Other participants, incluattorneys, witnesses, court reporters, court witnesses, the media, and jurors are also imeffective operations of the clerks’ offices. court participants to work together effectivmanages courtroom space, information tec

audio and video systems, financial manag

decentralization, personnel administrationadministrative functions, as well as the sucourtroom for the proper functioning of prjudicial system as a whole benefits from thmanagement services provided by the cler
Court Interpreters

The district courts use both staff and contract court interpreters. Staff court interpreters serve in district courts where there is a substantial need for interpreting services on a daily basis. This is particularly true in border courts and courts located in large metropolitan areas. Locating, scheduling, and contracting with court interpreters is not practical in locations that have frequent needs for interpreting services. Spanish is the most frequently needed language for interpreting events in the courts, comprising 97 percent of all reported interpreting events in FY 2019. In FY 2019, there were 387,869 court events that required the services of an interpreter. Of those events, 377,232 were in Spanish. Pro Se Law Clerks The objective of the pro se law clerk program is to receive, prepare, and process civil complaints filed against the government by prisoners and other individuals without attorney representation. Pro se law clerks review complaints for procedural adequacy to permit judges to proceed with the disposition of the cases. This conserves judicial resources — 

without pro se law clerks, district judges awould have to perform this work. The nuclerks is determined by a formula driven spetition filings. For the 12-month period there were 54,445 petitions filed. This repincrease from the 53,626 filings in statisticincrease is due primarily to a rise in prisonrights petitions filed between 2018 and 20Death Penalty Law Clerks Death penalty law clerks serve both as subresources to judges in death penalty habeaas case management monitors, since capitlengthy and involve numerous issues. The these positions provides credit for death pin federal court that are not stayed. Courtpending death penalty cases to be eligible position, and nine cases for a full-time posmonth period ending June 30, 2019, there unstayed death penalty cases in the distric
Percent 

Increase/

Decrease

2009 257,204 0.3% 75,324 7.6%2010 285,215 10.9% 78,213 3.8%2011 289,630 1.5% 78,764 0.7%2012 286,232 -1.2% 73,455 -6.7%2013 283,087 -1.1% 69,642 -5.2%2014 298,713 5.5% 64,027 -8.1%2015 280,037 -6.3% 60,866 -4.9%2016 290,430 3.7% 61,021 0.3%2017 271,721 -6.4% 58,121 -4.8%2018 281,202 3.5% 67,257 15.7%2019 293,520 4.4% 73,012 8.6%

ESTIMATED 2 2020 294,700 0.4% 78,800 7.9%

Year Social Security Diversity Prisoner Filings All Other Total

ACTUAL1 2009 13,222 81,188 52,237 110,557 257,204

2010 13,725 104,703 51,748 115,039 285,2152011 15,697 101,508 53,692 118,733 289,6302012 17,043 94,568 53,606 121,015 286,2322013 19,121 89,359 55,369 119,238 283,0872014 19,530 102,568 62,402 114,213 298,7132015 19,102 86,865 52,844 121,226 280,0372016 18,407 83,170 70,863 117,990 290,4302017 18,953 75,449 61,031 116,288 271,7212018 19,115 89,018 53,626 119,443 281,2022019 17,903 100,629 54,445 120,543 293,520

ESTIMATED2 2020 17,700 103,900 55,800 117,300 294,700

Criminal 

Filings

Table A-1.6 Components of Civil Caseload Table A-1.5 Civil and Criminal Filings

Year Civil Filings

Percent 

Increase/ 

Decrease

ACTUAL1

1Actual data for 2009 through 2019 is based on the 12-month periods ending June 30. 2Estimates for 2020 are based on projections for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2020. 
Courts of Appeals and Circuit Units

Table A-1.7 Appellate Court Workload1 

2018 

Actual

2019 

Actual

2020 

Estimate

-5.4% -2.9% 6.5%

Appeals Filings 49,220 47,783 50,900

1For the 12-month periods ending June 30. Circuit ExecutivesThe principal responsibility of the circuit executive’s office is to act as the secretariat for the circuit’s judicial council and its committees, and in some circuits, for the court of appeals and its committees. In this capacity, the circuit executives’ offices participate in policy oversight and assist in many areas of circuit-wide importance. These include planning for the effective and efficient use of space and facilities, information technology, financial management and budget decentralization, and planning and organizing the circuit’s judicial conference. The circuit executives’ offices also provide vital administrative and logistical support to the courts of appeals, including information technology, procurement, budget management, and personnel administration. 

Appellate ClerksThe clerks’ offices are the public businesappellate courts and provide specific centin case-related and logistical areas. Emploffices perform essential functions necessof the courts, such as: 

 recording and maintaining all case 

public records and information ne

 providing guidance to lawyers, lit distributing case materials to judg

making; and 

 providing vital logistical support. 

The case-related workload of the clerks’ owith changes in case filings. Case decisions in appellate courts are madthree judges or, in some instances, by an eall the judges on the court review the casereside in locations throughout the geograpAppellate clerks’ offices are situated at thcircuit, providing a central public businesjudges, lawyers, litigants, and the public. receive case materials for filing, maintain arrange for judges to convene in panels as decisions. Inquiries about cases, procedumatters are directed to the clerks’ offices. assembled, as appropriate, and dispatched 
are advised of the schedule for decision-making. Decisions are made after oral argument hearings or submissions on briefs that are scheduled by the clerks’ offices. Decisions are filed in the clerks’ offices, which are then responsible for distribution of the decisions to the parties and the public, including posting on 

court websites. Staff Attorneys

Staff attorneys generally perform legal research on all pro se cases, that is, cases where a party serves as his or her own counsel, most of which are filed by prisoners. In addition, they work on substantive and procedural motions, direct criminal appeals, death penalty cases, and cases that do not require oral argument. Staff attorneys screen cases and research complex legal issues for cases that may be scheduled for oral argument. Some staff attorneys also assist the court on fully counseled 

cases, providing legal research assistance and presenting recommendations to the judges. Staff attorneys also write memoranda in cases addressing jurisdictional issues that result in disposition of the appeal. By drafting legal research memoranda that analyze the case issues and recommend appropriate disposition, staff attorneys assist judges in disposing of the appellate cases in a timely and efficient manner. Pro se cases represented 48.9 percent of national appellate filings in FY 2019. Staff attorneys preliminarily reviewing both pro se cases and substantive motions, as well as 

examining cases for jurisdictional defectsjudges and contributes to timely dispositiCircuit MediatorsCircuit mediators facilitate the disposition through negotiated settlements, without ainvolvement. Circuit mediators are skillewho perform sensitive, confidential settleattorneys often are able to streamline or dcases not easily settled. Distinct from stamediators promote the voluntary settlemeappeals without court action. The program resources and improves appellate case maLibrariansThe national court library program is a neheadquarters libraries and 85 smaller satetypically located in district courthouses. Ijudiciary’s cost-containment initiatives, 1have been closed since 2014. Although thfalls administratively under the courts of librarians serve and support the informatiof all federal courts and judges: appellate

and bankruptcy. In addition to federal judare provided to tens of thousands of judicincluding law clerks and chambers staff, smediators, clerks of court, probation and ppersonnel, and public defenders. Many c
serve the public, including pro se litigants and bar association members. Librarians deliver comprehensive research, reference, and instruction services, and procure and facilitate access to the most reliable, authoritative, accurate, and up-to-date research resources. Library staff members also manage the acquisition and development of chambers’ legal resource collections. To support the information needs of on-site personnel as well as remote users within their broad and geographically dispersed areas, court libraries implement digital communication technologies, deliver web-based training services, and provide comprehensive online access to research collections. Librarians design website and internet resources, develop online research guides, create current awareness services that push content directly to their users, and support the design and publication of court materials. Subject specialization and deep legal and jurisdictional expertise is required of court librarians, as well as the ability to support multidisciplinary research in economics, science, medicine, social sciences, engineering, technology, and other business- and industry-specific fields. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel ClerksThe Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1994 requires that each circuit establish a Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP) unless the Judicial Council of the circuit finds that either there are insufficient judicial resources in the circuit, or the establishment of a BAP would result in undue delay or 

increased cost to parties in bankruptcy cacurrently five BAPs nationally. A BAP is bankruptcy judges within a circuit who arcircuit’s judicial council to decide, with th

parties, appeals from bankruptcy court de

a BAP exists, bankruptcy appeals may be 

court, if a party so chooses. A BAP requires a minimum of four bankr

from a different district, because the legisbankruptcy judge from hearing an appeal district for which he or she was appointedoffices have support functions and responthe appellate clerks’ offices. 
Bankruptcy Courts 

Table A-1.8 Bankruptcy Court Workload1 

2018 2019

Actual Actual

775,578 773,361 787,600

-2.6% -0.3% 1.8%

2020 

Estimate

Bankruptcy Filings

1For the 12-month periods ending June 30.Bankruptcy ClerksThe clerk’s office is responsible for administrative activities pertaining to processing bankruptcy case filings. Employees in clerks’ offices perform essential functions necessary for the operation of the courts, such as: 

 case tracking and scheduling, including the use of the 

case management system (CM/ECF); 

 statistical reporting; and  receipting and accounting for fees and fines collected. 

All of these functions are essential elements in processing bankruptcy cases. Public and private sector entities rely on effective bankruptcy case processing by the clerks’ offices. The bankruptcy court clerks’ offices facilitate processing cases, which helps individuals, attorneys, and businesses filing cases nationwide. To enable court participants to work together effectively, the clerks’ offices manage courtroom space, information technology services, audio and video systems, 

financial management, budget decentralizadministration, and other administrative fthe support required in the courtroom for The judicial system, and community as a the professional management services probankruptcy clerks’ offices. Bankruptcy Administrators Nearly all bankruptcy cases are administecase trustee. In most bankruptcy courts, coverseen by the United States Trustee Procomponent of the Department of Justice. Trustee assigns trustees to cases, maintainpanel of trustees, monitors the conduct of oversees related administrative functions, compliance with applicable laws and procHowever, two states—Alabama and Nortunder a different structure. In each of the districts within those two states, a bankruoversees case administration and performduties required of United States Trustees. administrators are employed and overseen have virtually the same authority as a Uniwith a few exceptions. 
Table A-1.9 Components of Bankruptcy Filings 

ACTUAL1 2009 907,603 14,525 384,187 1,306,315

2010 1,133,320 15,035 424,242 1,572,5972011 1,083,671 13,556 432,333 1,529,5602012 914,015 11,664 385,949 1,311,6282013 778,845 10,139 348,994 1,137,9782014 669,976 8829 321,278 1,000,0832015 568,679 7,112 303,945 879,7362016 509,769 8,532 300,858 819,1592017 489,011 7,628 299,398 796,0372018 479,151 7,686 288,741 775,5782019 479,043 7,683 286,635 773,361

ESTIMATED2 2020 495,200 7,600 284,800 787,600

Chapter 7 Chapter 13 Total Chapters 9, 11, 12, & 15 Year 

1Actual data for 2009 through 2019 is based on the 12-month periods ending June 30. 2 Estimates for 2020 are based on projections for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2020.