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§ 251. Appointment and number of judges; offices

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Release point 119-83 · current through 04/13/2026

§ 251.

Appointment and number of judges; offices

(a)

The President shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, nine judges who shall constitute a court of record to be known as the United States Court of International Trade. Not more than five of such judges shall be from the same political party. The court is a court established under article III of the Constitution of the United States.

(b)

The offices of the Court of International Trade shall be located in New York, New York.

Source(June 25, 1948, ch. 646, 62 Stat. 899; July 14, 1956, ch. 589, § 1, 70 Stat. 532; Pub. L. 96–417, title I, § 101,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1727; Pub. L. 104–317, title V, § 501(b)(1),
Oct. 19, 1996
, 110 Stat. 3856.)
Notes

Historical and Revision Notes

Based on title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 296 (Mar. 3, 1911, ch. 231, § 187(a), as added Oct. 10, 1940, ch. 843, § 1, 54 Stat. 1101).
This section contains only a part of section 296 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed. Other provisions of such section are incorporated in sections 252, 253, 254, 455, 1581, 2071, 2639, and 2640 of this title.
The provision that vacancies should be filled by appointment of the President and confirmed by the Senate was omitted as unnecessary in view of the language of the revised section.
Words “a court of record known as” were added. (See Reviser’s Note under section 171 of this title.)
The term “chief judge” was substituted for “presiding judge.” (See reviser’s note under section 136 of this title.)
The provisions of such section 296 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., relating to assignment and powers of retired judges were omitted as covered by sections 294 and 296 of this title.
Changes in phraseology were made.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1996—Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 104–317 redesignated subsec. (c) as (b) and struck out former subsec. (b) which read as follows: “The President shall designate one of the judges of the Court of International Trade who is less than seventy years of age to serve as chief judge. The chief judge shall continue to serve as chief judge until he reaches the age of seventy years and another judge is designated as chief judge by the President. After the designation of another judge to serve as chief judge, the former chief judge may continue to serve as a judge of the court.”
1980—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 96–417 incorporated first par. in provisions designated subsec. (a), redesignated the United States Customs Court as the United States Court of International Trade, and deleted “appointed” before “shall be”.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 96–417 added subsec. (b) and struck out a second paragraph requiring the President to designate from time to time one of the judges to act as chief judge.
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 96–417 designated third par. as subsec. (c) and substituted “Court of International Trade” for “court” and “located in New York, New York” for “located at the port of New York”.
1956—Act
July 14, 1956
, declared the Customs Court to be a court established under article III of the Constitution of the United States.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 1980 Amendment

Pub. L. 96–417, title VII, § 701,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1747, as amended by Pub. L. 96–542, § 1,
Dec. 17, 1980
, 94 Stat. 3209, provided that:
“(a)

Except as otherwise provided in this section, the provisions of and amendments made by this Act [see section 1 of Pub. L. 96–417, set out as a Short Title of 1980 Amendment note under section 1 of this title] shall take effect on

November 1, 1980
and shall apply with respect to civil actions pending on or commenced on or after such date.

“(b)
(1)

The following sections of title 28, United States Code, shall apply with respect to civil actions commenced on or after the effective date of this Act [

Nov. 1, 1980
]:

“(A)

Sections 1581(d), 1581(g), 1581(h), 1581(i), and 1583, as amended by section 201 of this Act.

“(B)

Sections 2631(d), 2631(g), 2631(h), 2631(i), 2631(j), 2632(a), 2635, 2636, 2637(c), 2639(b), 2640(a)(5), 2640(c), 2640(d), 2643(a), 2643(c)(2), 2643(c)(4), and 2644, as amended by section 301 of this Act.

“(C)

Section 1876, as added by section 302(a) of this Act.

“(D)

Sections 2601 and 2602, as amended by section 403 of this Act.

“(E)

Section 1919, as amended by section 510 of this Act.

“(F)

Section 1963A, as added by section 511(a) of this Act.

“(2)

Sections 337(c) and 641(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930 [19 U.S.C. 1337(c) and 1641(b)], as amended by sections 604 and 611 of this Act, shall apply with respect to civil actions commenced on or after the effective date of this Act.

“(3)

Section 284 of the Trade Act of 1974 [19 U.S.C. 2395], as added by section 613 of this Act, shall apply with respect to civil actions commenced on or after the effective date of this Act.

“(c)
(1)

The following sections of title 28, United States Code, shall apply with respect to civil actions commenced on or after the 90th day after the effective date of this Act [

Nov. 1, 1980
]:

“(A)

Sections 1582, 2639(a)(2), and 2640(a)(6), as amended by sections 201 and 301 of this Act.

“(B)

Sections 1352, 1355, and 1356, as amended by sections 506, 507, and 508 of this Act.

“(2)

Section 592(e) of the Tariff Act of 1930 [19 U.S.C. 1592(e)], as amended by section 609 of this Act, shall apply with respect to civil actions commenced on or after 90th day after the effective date of this Act.”

[Amendment of section 701 of Pub. L. 96–417, set out above, by Pub. L. 96–542 effective as of
Nov. 1, 1980
, see section 3 of Pub. L. 96–542, set out as a note under section 1516a of Title 19, Customs Duties.]

References to Certain Courts Deemed References to the United States Court of International Trade

Pub. L. 96–417, title VII, § 702,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1748, provided that:
“Any reference in any statute or regulation of the United States to the United States Customs Court, the U.S. Customs Court, or the Customs Court shall be deemed to be a reference to the United States Court of International Trade.”

Effect on Customs Court Judges

Pub. L. 96–417, title VII, § 703,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1748, provided that:
“(a)

Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the amendments made by title I of this Act [amending this section and section 293 of this title] shall not affect the status of any individual serving as judge or chief judge of the Customs Court on the date of enactment of this Act [

Oct. 10, 1980
].

“(b)

The requirement that a person may not continue to serve as chief judge of the Court of International Trade after having reached the age of seventy years, as set forth in the amendment made by section 101 of this Act [amending this section], shall apply to any individual serving as chief judge on or after the date of enactment of this Act [

Oct. 10, 1980
].”

Effect on Pending Cases

Pub. L. 96–417, title VII, § 704,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1748, provided that:
“Nothing in this Act [see section 1 of Pub. L. 96–417, set out as a Short Title of 1980 Amendment note under section 1 of this title] shall cause the dismissal of any action commenced prior to the date of enactment of this Act [
Oct. 10, 1980
] under jurisdictional statutes relating to the Customs Court or the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals as in effect immediately prior to such date of enactment [
Oct. 10, 1980
].”

Tennessee Valley Authority Legal Representation

Pub. L. 96–417, title VII, § 705,
Oct. 10, 1980
, 94 Stat. 1748, provided that:
“Nothing in this Act [see section 1 of Pub. L. 96–417, set out as a Short Title of 1980 Amendment note under section 1 of this title] affects the authority of the Tennessee Valley Authority under the Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933 [16 U.S.C. 831 et seq.] to represent itself by attorneys of its choosing.”

Limitation or Alteration of Jurisdiction

Act July 14, 1956, ch. 589, § 4, 70 Stat. 532, provided that:
“Nothing contained in this Act [amending this section and sections 292, 293, and 295 of this title] shall be construed in any way to limit or alter the jurisdiction heretofore conferred upon the United States Customs Court [now Court of International Trade] by any provision of law.”

Continuation of Organization of Court

Act June 25, 1948, ch. 646, § 2(b), 62 Stat. 985, provided in part that the provisions of this title as set out in section 1 of act
June 25, 1948
, with respect to the organization of the court, shall be construed as continuations of existing law, and the tenure of the judges, officers, and employees, in office on
Sept. 1, 1948
, shall not be affected by its enactment, but each of them shall continue to serve in the same capacity under the appropriate provisions of this title, pursuant to his prior appointment.

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