⚖️Judicial BranchCourt Capacity
Federal Court Case Clearance Rate
Are federal courts keeping up with incoming caseloads, or is the backlog growing?
96.4%
% (district courts, civil)
vs. prior year
Updated QuarterlyHigh data quality
Back to Judicial Branch
⚖️Judicial BranchCourt Capacity
Federal Court Caseload Backlog
How many cases are pending in federal courts, and how long have they been waiting?
Updated QuarterlyAs of 2024-06-30High data quality
Historical Trend
Data sourced from official government APIsWhat It Measures
Total number of pending cases in federal district courts (civil and criminal), courts of appeals, and immigration courts. Segmented by age of pending case: 0–6 months, 6–12 months, 1–3 years, 3+ years ("old cases" under CJRA standards).
Why It Matters
A large backlog of old cases represents both a justice failure and a systemic capacity problem. Cases pending over 3 years indicate resource constraints, judicial vacancies, or structural bottlenecks. The immigration court backlog is a frequently reported policy concern.
Data Caveats
- Immigration courts (EOIR) are DOJ administrative courts, not Article III courts; comparison requires care.
- A large pending docket does not always mean dysfunction — complex class actions legitimately take years.
- Pandemic-era filings suppressed new cases in some categories while creating backlogs in others.
Drill-Down Options
- By court level (district, circuit)
- By case age bucket
- By district
- Federal vs. immigration courts
Suggested Dashboard Layout
Example Visualization
Stacked bar of pending cases by age bucket (0–6mo, 6–12mo, 1–3yr, 3yr+). Trend line of total pending caseload. Circuit-level heatmap. Parallel view of immigration court backlog.
Suggested Chart Types
Bar ChartArea ChartData Table
Related KPIs
⚖️Judicial BranchCourt Efficiency
Average Case Resolution Time
How long does a typical federal civil or criminal case take to resolve?
10.2 mo.
months (median civil)
vs. prior year
Updated AnnualHigh data quality
⚖️Judicial BranchCourt Capacity
Federal Judicial Vacancy Rate
What percentage of federal judicial seats are currently vacant?
8.2%
% vacant seats
vs. 6 months ago
Updated MonthlyHigh data quality