Court History

Tenth Circuit – The First 77 Years

The Tenth Judicial Circuit is vast, comprising 560,625 square miles, or almost 20 percent of the land mass of the United States.  It extends from the Great Salt Lake to the Missouri River and from Yellowstone to Mexico.  Most of this land was acquired from France in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 for the price of 3¢ an acre.
 

When Congress created the present appellate system in 1891, it established nine circuits, the largest of which, the Eighth, consisted of thirteen states.  In 1929 Congress created the Tenth Circuit by splitting off six states:  Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming, leaving the remaining seven states in the Eighth Circuit.  Thus, the year of 2004 was the diamond anniversary of the circuit.
 

The Tenth Circuit has a glorious history.  Its oldest court is the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, which was created in 1861, the year of Kansas’ statehood.  The era was one of turbulence and violence, with abolitionists warring against slavery interests in what became known as Bleeding Kansas.  The state now has two judges on the Tenth Circuit, one of whom is the chief judge, ten district court judges, four bankruptcy court judges and seven magistrate judges, with courthouses located in Kansas City, Wichita and Topeka.  The famous civil rights case of Brown v. Board of Education originated in this court fifty years ago.
 

The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, dates from the Centennial State’s admission to the Union in 1876.  Its mining and water law, agriculture and ranching abound with legal interest.  In 2003 its splendid new courthouse in Denver was dedicated.  This state has five circuit judges, eleven district court judges, five bankruptcy court judges and seven magistrate judges, and produced a former Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
 

The federal district court in Wyoming came into existence with statehood in 1890.  With a history as colorful as any, the cowboys, petroleum and coal producers, ranchers and the beautiful land present a fascinating panorama.  It was the locale of the Teapot Dome litigation where the government’s case was dismissed in 1924 for failure to prove fraud by clear and convincing evidence.  That ruling was reversed by the Eighth Circuit and the Supreme Court upheld the reversal, Mammoth Oil Company v. United States, 275 U.S. 13 (1927).  Wyoming has three judges on the Court of Appeals and has courthouses in Cheyenne and Casper.  There are three district court judges, one bankruptcy court judge, and seven magistrate judges.
 

Next in the chronology of the courts in the Tenth Circuit is the Court of Appeals itself, which began as part of the Eighth Circuit in 1891, and then became the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1929.  It began with four judges, two from the Eight Circuit (those from Colorado and Oklahoma) and the other two elevated from the district courts of Kansas and New Mexico.  It now has ten active and ten senior judges.
 

The federal district court in Utah also began with statehood in 1896.  The state’s long and unique history, beginning with Mormon settlement in 1847, abounds with significant and interesting legal problems including polygamy, religious freedom and commercial cases.  Utah has four judges on the Court of Appeals.  There are nine district court judges, three bankruptcy court judges and six magistrate judges.  The courthouse is in Salt Lake City.
 

Oklahoma’s two federal district courts began with statehood in 1907.  A third district, the Northern District, was created in 1924.  Oklahoma’s story of extensive Indian cultures, petroleum production, dynamic leadership and individual achievement reads like an absorbing novel.  Oklahoma has three judges on the Court of Appeals.  The Northern District in Tulsa, the Western District in Oklahoma City and the Eastern District in Muskogee have a total of fifteen district court judges, six bankruptcy court judges and twelve magistrate judges. 
 

The last state in the circuit to obtain a U.S. District Court was New Mexico, where statehood occurred in 1912.  Its Spanish, Indian, and Mexican history is of incomparable interest.  It is indeed the land of enchantment and has preserved a unique culture along with its modern business, government facilities and gambling casinos.  New Mexico has three judges on the Court of Appeals.  It has ten district court judges, two bankruptcy court judges and fourteen magistrate judges.
 

Our circuit now has over forty thousand practicing lawyers, a substantial and growing number of paralegals, and over one hundred thirty federal district court, bankruptcy court and magistrate judges, as detailed above.

Historical Profile of mid-19th Century Colorado Lawyers