Title 28Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-73

§130 Wisconsin

Title 28 › Part PART I— - ORGANIZATION OF COURTS › Chapter CHAPTER 5— - DISTRICT COURTS › § 130

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Wisconsin is split into two federal court districts: the Eastern District and the Western District. The Eastern District covers many counties in the eastern part of the state, including Milwaukee, Brown (Green Bay), Outagamie (Appleton/Oshkosh area), Racine, Kenosha, Winnebago, and others. Courts for the Eastern District meet in Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Oshkosh. The Western District covers many counties in central and western Wisconsin, including Dane (Madison), La Crosse, Eau Claire, Rock, Marathon (Wausau area), and others. Courts for the Western District meet in Eau Claire, La Crosse, Madison, Superior, and Wausau.

Full Legal Text

Title 28, §130

Judiciary and Judicial Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Wisconsin is divided into two judicial districts to be known as the Eastern and Western districts of Wisconsin. Eastern District (a) The Eastern District comprises the counties of Brown, Calumet, Dodge, Door, Florence, Fond du Lac, Forest, Green Lake, Kenosha, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Marinette, Marquette, Menominee, Milwaukee, Oconto, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Racine, Shawano, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha, Waupaca, Waushara, and Winnebago. Court for the Eastern District shall be held at Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Oshkosh. Western District (b) The Western District comprises the counties of Adams, Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Buffalo, Burnett, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire, Grant, Green, Iowa, Iron, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, La Crosse, Lafayette, Lincoln, Marathon, Monroe, Oneida, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Portage, Price, Richland, Rock, Rusk, Saint Croix, Sauk, Sawyer, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vernon, Vilas, Washburn, and Wood. Court for the Western District shall be held at Eau Claire, La Crosse, Madison, Superior, and Wausau.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Based on title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 195 (Mar. 3, 1911, ch. 231, § 114, 36 Stat. 1129; July 24, 1935, ch. 413, 49 Stat. 495). Provisions for keeping the courts and their offices open at all times were omitted as covered by section 452 of this title. Provisions for maintenance of offices by the clerk and marshal, and for the appointment and residence of a deputy marshal for Superior, were omitted as covered by section 541 [see 561], 542 [see 561], and 751 of this title. Words “All causes and proceedings instituted in the court at Superior shall be tried therein, unless by consent of the parties, or upon the order of the court, they are transferred to another place for trial,” were omitted as unnecessary. Such provision, as to civil cases, is covered by section 1404 of this title, and, as to criminal cases, is rendered unnecessary because of inherent power of the court and Rules 18–20 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Provisions for the return of process, including criminal warrants, at Superior and other places in the western district and for the keeping of records in the clerk’s office at Superior, were omitted, since such matters can be regulated more appropriately by court rule or order. (See Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 4, and Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 4(g).) Changes in arrangement and phraseology were made.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1962—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 87–573 inserted reference to Menominee county.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Designation of Judge to Hold Court, Eastern District Pub. L. 106–553, § 1(a)(2) [title III, § 305(c)], Dec. 21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2762, 2762A–85, provided that: “The chief judge of the eastern district of Wisconsin shall designate 1 judge who shall hold court for such district in Green Bay, Wisconsin.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

28 U.S.C. § 130

Title 28Judiciary and Judicial Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73