The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California (in case citations, E.D. Cal.) is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

The District was created on March 18, 1966, with the division of the Northern and Southern districts, leading to the creation of the Central and Eastern districts.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. the United States attorney is Eric Grant.

Organization of the court

thumb|Yosemite Office of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California located in Yosemite National ParkThe United States District Court for the Eastern District of California is one of four federal judicial districts in California. Court for the District is held at the Robert E. Coyle U.S. Courthouse in Fresno and Robert T. Matsui U.S. Courthouse in Sacramento.

  • Fresno Division comprises the following counties: Calaveras, Fresno, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Tuolumne.
  • Sacramento Division comprises the following counties: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo, and Yuba.
  • Bakersfield Office hears misdemeanor and petty criminal offenses on federal lands and National Parks in Inyo and Kern counties. Court is held at Bakersfield, Edwards Air Force Base, and Ridgecrest.
  • Redding Office hears misdemeanor and petty criminal offenses on federal lands and National Parks in Northern California. Court is held at Sierra Army Depot, Redding, and Susanville.
  • Yosemite Office hears misdemeanor and petty criminal offenses in Yosemite National Park. National parks are under federal jurisdiction. The perennially large crowds of tourists at Yosemite create a unique situation justifying the presence of a courthouse inside the park itself.

Current judges

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Former judges

Chief judges

Succession of seats

Request for expansion

The six sitting judges and three senior judges have submitted a draft letter to the members of the Senate and House of Representatives from the Eastern District in which they argue that population growth in the district has necessitated an increase in the number of district judges.

US attorney

  • John P. Hyland 1966–1970
  • Duane D. Keyes 1970–1977
  • Herman Sillas, Jr. 1977–1980
  • William B. Shubb 1980–1981
  • Francis M. Goldsberry II 1981
  • Donald B. Ayer 1981–1986
  • Peter A. Nowinski 1986–1987
  • David F. Levi 1987–1990
  • Richard Jenkins 1990–1991
  • George L. O'Connell 1991–93
  • Robert M. Twiss 1993 <!-- https://ballotpedia.org/Robert_M._Twiss -->
  • Charles J. Stevens 1993–1997
  • Paul Seave 1997–2001
  • McGregor W. Scott 2003–2009
  • Lawrence G Brown 2009<!-- https://steinberginstitute.org/champion/larry-brown/ -->
  • Benjamin B. Wagner 2009–2016
  • Phillip Talbert 2016–2017
  • McGregor W. Scott 2017–2021
  • Phillip Talbert 2021–2025
  • Michele Beckwith 2025-July 15, 2025 (acting)
  • Eric Grant 2025–present

See also

  • Courts of California
  • List of current United States district judges
  • List of United States federal courthouses in California

References

  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of California
  • United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California