Below are tables showing authorized positions for U.S. district judges, U.S. bankruptcy judges, and U.S. magistrate judges. While district and bankruptcy judgeships are authorized by congressional statute, magistrate judgeships are authorized by the Judicial Conference of the United States. For more detail regarding the authorization of these judgeships, see the Legislative History and Succession Chart(s) pages for each district court (see menu at right), Authorized Bankruptcy Judgeships, Authorized Magistrate Judgeships (by location), and Authorized Magistrate Judgeships (by fiscal year).
Authorized District Judgeships |
||||||
| Illinois District |
Northern District |
Eastern District |
Central District |
Southern District |
Total Judgeships |
|
| March 3, 1819 3 Stat. 502 |
1 |
1 |
||||
| February 13, 1855 10 Stat. 606 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|||
| March 3, 1905 33 Stat. 992 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
||
| September 14, 1922 42 Stat. 837 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
6 |
||
| February 20, 1931 46 Stat. 1196 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
7 |
||
| February 25, 1931 46 Stat. 1417 |
5 |
2 |
2 |
9 |
||
| May 31, 1938 52 Stat. 584 |
6 |
2 |
2 |
10 |
||
| May 24, 1940 54 Stat. 219 |
7 |
2 |
2 |
11 |
||
| December 31, 1940 Temporary judgeship expired |
6 |
2 |
2 |
10 |
||
| August 14, 1950 64 Stat. 443 |
8 |
2 |
2 |
12 |
||
| May 19, 1961 75 Stat. 80 |
10 |
2 |
2 |
14 |
||
| March 18, 1966 80 Stat. 75 |
11 |
2 |
2 |
15 |
||
| June 2, 1970 84 Stat. 294 |
13 |
2 |
2 |
17 |
||
| October 2, 1978 92 Stat. 883 |
13 |
2 |
2 |
17 |
||
| October 20, 1978 92 Stat. 1629 |
16 |
3 |
2 |
21 |
||
| July 10, 1984 98 Stat. 333 |
21 |
3 |
3 |
27 |
||
| December 1, 1990 104 Stat. 5089 |
22 |
4 |
4 |
30 |
||
| September 2, 1957 (effective December 10, 1999) 71 Stat. 586 |
22 |
4 |
5 |
31 |
||
| October 11, 2001 Temporary judgeship expired |
22 |
4 |
4 |
30 |
||
| December 1, 1990 (effective December 5, 2022) 104 Stat. 5089 |
23 | 4 | 4 | 31 | ||
Authorized Bankruptcy Judgeships |
||||
| Northern District |
Central District |
Southern District |
Total Judgeships |
|
| July 10, 1984 98 Stat. 336 |
8 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| October 27, 1986 100 Stat. 3088 |
10 | 3 | 1 | 14 |
| August 26, 1992 106 Stat. 965 |
10 | 3 | 2 (1 + 1 temporary) |
15 (14 + 1 temporary) |
Authorized Magistrate Judgeships (by location) |
|||
| Northern District | |||
| Location | Full-Time | Part-Time | |
| Chicago | 3 (1971–1977) 4 (1978–1985) 6 (1986–1989) 8 (1990–1995) 9 (1996–2004) 10 (2005–2010) 11 (2011–2019) 12 (2020–present) |
||
| Freeport or Rockford | 1 (1978–1991) | ||
| Ottawa or Rockford | 1 (1972–1977) | ||
| Rockford | 1 (1992–2019) 2 (2020–present) |
1 (1971) | |
| Total | 3 (1971–1977) 4 (1978–1985) 6 (1986–1989) 8 (1990–1991) 9 (1992–1995) 10 (1996–2004) 11 (2005–2010) 12 (2011–2019) 14 (2020–present) |
1 (1971–1991) 0 (1992–present) |
|
| Eastern District (abolished 1979) | |||
| Location | Full-Time | Part-Time | Combination |
| Belleville* | 1 (1972–1979) | ||
| Benton* | 1 (1976–1979) | 1 (1971–1974) | |
| Benton or Carbondale | 1 (1975) | ||
| Carbondale | 1 (1971–1974) | ||
| Danville** | 1 (1971) | bankruptcy judge-magistrate 1 (1972–1979) |
|
| Effingham | 1 (1971–1974) | ||
| East St. Louis | 1 (1971) | ||
| Lawrenceville | 1 (1971–1974) | ||
| Total | 0 (1971–1975) 1 (1976–1979) |
6 (1971) 5 (1972–1974) 2 (1975) 1 (1976–1979) |
0 (1971) 1 (1972–1979) |
| *The magistrate judgeships in Belleville and Benton were transferred to the Southern District of Illinois when the Eastern District of Illinois was abolished in 1979. | |||
| **The bankruptcy judge-magistrate position in Danville was transferred to the new Central District of Illinois when the Eastern District of Illinois was abolished in 1979. | |||
| Central District | |||
| Location | Full-Time | Part-Time | Combination |
| Champaign-Urbana or Danville | 1 (1995–present) | ||
| Danville* | bankruptcy judge-magistrate 1 (1980–1984) |
||
| Danville or Peoria | 1 (1985–present) | ||
| Peoria** | 1 (1980–1984) | clerk-magistrate 1 (1980–1988) |
|
| Rock Island** | 1 (1980–1994) | ||
| Springfield** | 1 (1980–present) | ||
| Total | 1 (1980–1984) 2 (1985–1994) 3 (1995–present) |
2 (1980–1984) 1 (1985–1994) 0 (1995–present) |
2 (1980–1984) 1 (1985–1988) 0 (1989–present) |
| *The bankruptcy judge-magistrate position in Danville was transferred from the Eastern District of Illinois to the new Central District of Illinois when the Eastern District was abolished in 1979. | |||
| **The magistrate judgeships in Peoria, Rock Island, and Springfield were transferred from the Southern District of Illinois to the new Central District of Illinois when the Central District was established in 1979. | |||
| Southern District | |||
| Location | Full-Time | Part-Time | |
| Alton | 1 (1971–1977) | ||
| Belleville* | 1 (1980) | ||
| Benton* | 1 (1980–present) | ||
| East St. Louis | 1 (1981–1993) 2 (1994–present) |
1 (1990–1993) | |
| Peoria** | 1 (1971–1979) | ||
| Rock Island** | 1 (1971–1979) | ||
| Springfield** | 1 (1978–1979) | 1 (1971–1977) | |
| Total | 0 (1971–1977) 1 (1978–1980) 2 (1981–1993) 3 (1994–present) |
4 (1971–1977) 2 (1978–1979) 1 (1980) 0 (1981–1989) 1 (1990–1993) 0 (1994–present) |
|
| *The magistrate judgeships in Belleville and Benton were transferred from the Eastern District of Illinois to the Southern District of Illinois when the Eastern District was abolished in 1979. | |||
| **The magistrate judgeships in Peoria, Rock Island, and Springfield were transferred to the new Central District of Illinois when it was established in 1979. | |||
Authorized Magistrate Judgeships (by fiscal year) |
||||||
| Northern District | ||||||
| Fiscal Year(s) | Full-Time | Total | Part-Time | Total | ||
| 1971 | Chicago (3) | 3 | Rockford | 1 | ||
| 1972–1977 | Chicago (3) | 3 | Ottawa or Rockford | 1 | ||
| 1978–1985 | Chicago (4) | 4 | Freeport or Rockford | 1 | ||
| 1986–1989 | Chicago (6) | 6 | Freeport or Rockford | 1 | ||
| 1990–1991 | Chicago (8) | 8 | Freeport or Rockford | 1 | ||
| 1992–1995 | Chicago (8), Rockford | 9 | 0 | |||
| 1996–2004 | Chicago (9), Rockford | 10 | 0 | |||
| 2005–2010 | Chicago (10), Rockford | 11 | 0 | |||
| 2011–2019 | Chicago (11), Rockford | 12 | 0 | |||
| 2020–present | Chicago (12), Rockford (2) | 14 | 0 | |||
| Eastern District (abolished 1979) | ||||||
| Fiscal Year(s) | Full-Time | Total | Part-Time | Total | Combination | Total |
| 1971 | 0 | Benton, Carbondale, Danville, East St. Louis, Effingham, Lawrenceville | 6 | 0 | ||
| 1972–1974 | 0 | Belleville, Benton, Carbondale, Effingham, Lawrenceville | 5 | Danville (bankruptcy judge-magistrate) | 1 | |
| 1975 | 0 | Belleville, Benton or Carbondale | 2 | Danville (bankruptcy judge-magistrate) | 1 | |
| 1976–1979 | Benton* | 1 | Belleville* | 1 | Danville (bankruptcy judge-magistrate)** | 1 |
| *The magistrate judgeships in Belleville and Benton were transferred to the Southern District of Illinois when the Eastern District of Illinois was abolished in 1979. | ||||||
| **The bankruptcy judge-magistrate position in Danville was transferred to the new Central District of Illinois when the Eastern District of Illinois was abolished in 1979. | ||||||
| Central District | ||||||
| Fiscal Year(s) | Full-Time | Total | Part-Time | Total | Combination | Total |
| 1980–1984 | Springfield* | 1 | Peoria*, Rock Island* | 2 | Danville (bankruptcy judge-magistrate)**, Peoria (clerk-magistrate) | 2 |
| 1985–1988 | Danville or Peoria, Springfield | 2 | Rock Island | 1 | Peoria (clerk-magistrate) | 1 |
| 1989–1994 | Danville or Peoria, Springfield | 2 | Rock Island | 1 | 0 | |
| 1995–present | Champaign-Urbana or Danville, Danville or Peoria, Springfield | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| *The magistrate judgeships in Peoria, Rock Island, and Springfield were transferred from the Southern District of Illinois to the new Central District of Illinois when the Central District was established in 1979. | ||||||
| **The bankruptcy judge-magistrate position in Danville was transferred from the Eastern District of Illinois to the new Central District of Illinois when the Eastern District was abolished in 1979. | ||||||
| Southern District | ||||||
| Fiscal Year(s) | Full-Time | Total | Part-Time | Total | ||
| 1971–1977 | 0 | Alton, Peoria, Rock Island, Springfield | 4 | |||
| 1978–1979 | Springfield* | 1 | Peoria*, Rock Island* | 2 | ||
| 1980 | Benton** | 1 | Belleville** | 1 | ||
| 1981–1989 | Benton, East St. Louis | 2 | 0 | |||
| 1990–1993 | Benton, East St. Louis | 2 | East St. Louis | 1 | ||
| 1994–present | Benton, East St. Louis (2) | 3 | 0 | |||
| *The magistrate judgeships in Peoria, Rock Island, and Springfield were transferred to the new Central District of Illinois when it was established in 1979. | ||||||
| **The magistrate judgeships in Belleville and Benton were transferred from the Eastern District of Illinois to the Southern District of Illinois when the Eastern District was abolished in 1979. | ||||||