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Status of Bankruptcy Judgeships — Judicial Business 2023

As of September 30, 2023, a total of 345 bankruptcy judgeships were authorized and funded, the same number as one year earlier. Of these judgeships, 298 were filled and 47 were vacant (compared with 310 filled and 35 vacant positions on the same date in 2022). In addition to judges in authorized positions, 26 retired bankruptcy judges who had been recalled by various circuit councils were providing service to the Judiciary at the end of September 2023.

For information on the status of bankruptcy judgeships since 2019, see Table 11.

Table 11
Status of Bankruptcy Judgeship Positions
September 30, 2019 - 2023
Year	Authorized Judgeships	Vacancies	Recalled Judges
2019	347¹	31	28
2020	345²	38	27
2021	345	35	24
2022	345	35	27
2023	345	47	26
¹ In 2019, three temporary judgeships lapsed: one in the Southern District of Mississippi, one in the Eastern District of California, and one in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. ² In 2020, two temporary judgeships lapsed: one in the Western District of Tennessee and one in the Central District of California.