Two Chief Judges Exit—Big Court Shake-Up

Historic building with large American flag and multiple flags in front

Two senior-status announcements just handed President Trump a rare opening to reshape two powerful federal appeals courts—right when vacancies have been unusually scarce.

At a Glance

Second Circuit Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston and Sixth Circuit Chief Judge Jeffrey Sutton plan to take senior status later in 2026, creating two appellate vacancies.
The openings stand out because appeals-court turnover has been limited since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
Vacancy counts vary by reporting date, but most open seats remain at the district-court level, not the appellate level.
Trump’s second-term confirmation pace has been faster than his first year in 2017, yet the overall pipeline is constrained by the lack of retirements.

Two Chief Judges Step Back, Creating High-Impact Openings

Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit notified the federal judiciary that she intends to assume senior status later in 2026, which will open a seat on the influential New York-based court. Around the same time, Sixth Circuit Chief Judge Jeffrey Sutton filed a similar notice. Because both are chief judges and both courts handle high-stakes national disputes, these vacancies carry more weight than a routine district-court opening.

The timing matters politically and institutionally. Before these notices, reporting showed essentially no current appellate vacancies, a bottleneck that limited the White House’s ability to place nominees on the courts that most often set binding precedent. Senior status does not remove a judge from the bench, but it does create a vacancy the president can fill while the judge typically continues hearing a reduced caseload. The result is immediate leverage for the current administration.

Why Vacancies Have Been Scarce Since Trump’s 2025 Return

Since January 20, 2025, the pace of judges leaving active status has been slow compared with other transitions, restricting opportunities for new appointments. Tracking across sources shows a vacancy picture dominated by district courts, not appeals courts. Depending on the snapshot date, Article III vacancies were reported in the high 30s to low 40s in early-to-mid February 2026, with only a small fraction tied to the appellate level until the Livingston and Sutton notices.

That scarcity is a central constraint even for a White House with a willing Senate. Analysts have emphasized that fewer vacancies can cap the number of seats a president can fill, regardless of political momentum. This also explains why the Livingston and Sutton developments are drawing attention: they create two openings at once on courts that decide major disputes over federal power, regulation, and constitutional rights. The limited turnover means each appellate opening becomes a bigger strategic prize.

Confirmation Pace: Faster Than 2017, Still Limited by the Pipeline

By early February 2026, Trump’s second-term administration had secured 27 confirmations—six to the courts of appeals and 21 to district courts—outpacing the first-year pace of his earlier term. Public tracking also shows the White House continuing to send nominations to the Senate, including new picks announced in January and February 2026 and at least one district-court confirmation in early February. Even so, the overall number of available seats remains the limiting factor.

One practical reality is that confirmations require both nominations and vacancies. With relatively few judges opting to take senior status or retire, the administration can move quickly on paper yet still face a narrower field of open positions than prior presidents encountered. The Livingston and Sutton vacancies change that dynamic for appellate seats specifically: they give the administration two new chances to influence precedent-setting courts, provided nominees can clear the Senate process.

What the Second and Sixth Circuits Mean for Policy and Constitutional Disputes

The Second Circuit is widely known for the scope of its docket, including major commercial and financial cases that run through New York’s legal ecosystem. The Sixth Circuit, covering parts of the Midwest, also plays a major role in nationally watched disputes. Because appellate rulings often stand as the final word for most litigants, these courts can shape how laws are applied long before any Supreme Court review—especially in contested areas involving federal agencies and constitutional boundaries.

For voters concerned about government overreach, the key point is structural rather than rhetorical: appellate judges help define how aggressively agencies can regulate, how strictly courts read statutes, and how constitutional claims are handled in everyday litigation. The research provided does not specify who Trump will nominate for these two seats or when Livingston and Sutton will formally transition, so the near-term story is process-driven. The next concrete milestone will be official nominations and the Senate’s timetable.