The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, New York and

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

. The court has appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Connecticut * Eastern District of New York *

Northern District of New York The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (in case citations, N.D.N.Y.) serves one of the 94 judicial districts in the United States and one of four in the state of New York. Appeals from the Northern District of New ...

* Southern District of New York * Western District of New York *

District of Vermont The United States District Court for the District of Vermont (in case citations, D. Vt.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the federal district of Vermont. The court has locations in Brattleboro, Burlington, and Rutland. The ...

The Second Circuit has its clerk's office and hears oral arguments at the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse at 40 Foley Square in

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...

. Due to renovations at that building, from 2006 until early 2013, the court temporarily relocated to the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse across Pearl Street from Foley Square; certain court offices temporarily relocated to the

Woolworth Building The Woolworth Building is an early skyscraper, early American skyscraper designed by architect Cass Gilbert located at 233 Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was the tallest building in ...

at 233 Broadway. Because the Second Circuit includes

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, it has long been one of the largest and most influential American federal appellate courts, especially in matters of

contract law A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to ...

, securities law, and antitrust law. In the 20th century, it came to be considered one of the two most prestigious federal appellate courts, along with the District of Columbia Circuit Court. Several notable judges have served on the Second Circuit, including three later named Associate Justices of the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point ...

: John Marshall Harlan II, Thurgood Marshall, and Sonia Sotomayor. Judge Learned Hand served on the court from 1924 to 1961, as did his cousin, Augustus Noble Hand, from 1927 until 1953. Judge Henry Friendly served from 1959 to 1986. File:WTM sheila 0042.jpg, Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse at 500 Pearl Street; the court's former temporary home File: WTM sheila 0036.jpg, Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse at 40 Foley Square

Current composition of the court

Vacancies and pending nominations

List of former judges

Chief judges

Succession of seats

References

External links

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

Recent opinions from FindLaw
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit New Haven, Connecticut Brooklyn Syracuse, New York Hartford, Connecticut 1891 establishments in the United States Courts and tribunals established in 1891