Midnight Judges Act Enables Lame-Duck Court Packing by Defeated Federalists

President John Adams signs the Judiciary Act of 1801 less than three weeks before the end of his term and the Federalist majority in Congress, expanding the federal judiciary by creating sixteen new circuit court judgeships and reducing the Supreme Court from six to five justices. After losing the election to Thomas Jefferson, Adams and the lame-duck Federalist Senate rapidly confirm numerous new federal judges to pack the courts with political allies before Democratic-Republicans take power. On March 2-3, 1801, Adams nominates and the Senate confirms 42 justices of the peace, with Adams signing official commissions late into the night of his final day in office—leading the group to be known as the “midnight judges.”

Federalists openly panic that the incoming Democratic-Republican administration might destroy the constitutional order, so they reorganize the court system to cement Federalist control despite their decisive electoral defeat. Republicans view the new circuit judgeships as a blatant ploy to pack federal courts with partisan cronies during a lame-duck period, undermining democratic legitimacy. The act eliminates circuit-riding duties for Supreme Court justices and grants new circuit courts jurisdiction over all cases arising under the Constitution and federal laws, significantly expanding Federalist judicial power at the moment of political defeat.

Once in office, President Jefferson and Democratic-Republican legislators set out to rescind the Judiciary Act, successfully repealing it on January 22, 1802, and removing newly appointed Federalists. Most Federalists who did not receive their commissions accept their fate, but William Marbury goes to court to force the Jefferson administration to deliver his commission, leading to the landmark Marbury v. Madison (1803) decision that establishes judicial review. The midnight judges episode demonstrates how losing parties attempt to entrench institutional power through judicial capture when voters reject them, establishing precedents for court manipulation, lame-duck power grabs, and using lifetime judicial appointments to thwart democratic transitions. This pattern recurs throughout American history whenever defeated political factions seek to impose minority rule through unelected judges, from Reconstruction-era judicial sabotage to modern court-packing debates and post-election judicial confirmations.