The federal court system has 94 federal districts. There is at least one district court in each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam and the Mariana Islands. In some of the larger or more populated states, there is more than one.
In states where there is only one court, the federal courts are typically located in the capital of the state. When there are two judicial districts in one state, then the capital and another large city are going to have a federal courthouse located in them. Those who are looking for their federal courthouse should go to eVerify.com, where they can get help in finding the district court for their geographic area.
The federal districts have jurisdiction over the majority of cases that are heard on the federal level. These cases include federal criminal trials as well as civil matters that fall under federal jurisdiction. The federal courts are the only courts that can hear cases involving bankruptcy as well as other matters including international trade agreements.
These cases cannot be heard in state courts, which is why there is a need for federal court districts in each state. The jurisdiction is dependent upon which state or district that the case originated in.
The same processes that are gone through on the state court level are practiced on a federal level as well. Juries are pooled from the state through the jury selection process. Anyone who has registered to vote can get a summons for jury duty. This pool of jurors can be utilized in either state or federal cases. The same process that is used to choose jurors is the same in both types of court proceedings.
Jurors are paid a stipend from the government that is holding the trial. Any person who appears for jury duty, whether they are selected or not, is paid for their time while they are going through the process of jury selection; if selected, they are paid for the duration of the trial as well.
The federal districts keep all of their cases filed and archived electronically. When the cases are not sealed to preserve evidence for appellate courts or to protect a minor, the case files and all of their contents are considered public domain. These records can be accessed by anyone who wants to read them or view the files that are contained therein.
With 94 U.S. districts, it can be difficult to know where to start looking for these files. Research time can get lengthy when the actual court district is unknown. The best way to get the information that is wanted is to go to eVerify.com, where there are researchers who have experience in searching through these courts archives. They can offer assistance and tips for accessing these files in a timely manner.
These files can be either from a criminal trial or a bankruptcy case. Those who have filed bankruptcy may need to get their case files to show past creditors who may not have been included in the original bankruptcy. It is going to be necessary for the files to be accessed in order to show the creditor that there indeed was a bankruptcy and that it was approved through the courts.
In some cases, a debt collector may have received the debt and is not aware of the bankruptcy proceedings since they are not the original creditor. When this happens, the collection agency is going to need to see proof of the bankruptcy in order to remove the supposed creditor from their files.