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Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-102

§462 Court Accommodations

Title 28 › PART I — ORGANIZATION OF COURTS › CHAPTER 21 — GENERAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO COURTS AND JUDGES › § 462

Last updated Aug 21, 2026|Official source

Summary

Federal courts (not the Supreme Court) may meet only where the Administrative Office’s Director provides space or where free, suitable space is given. The Director may set up courtrooms and chambers only at places where courts are allowed by law and when the circuit’s judicial council agrees. Circuit judges can have chambers elsewhere if their council approves. The Director must keep permanent space for the Federal Circuit and the Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C. Probation officers, pretrial officers, and Federal Public Defender offices get space approved by the circuit council. The Director can ask the General Services Administration to provide or close space with the Judicial Conference’s approval.

Full Legal Text

Title 28, §462

Judiciary and Judicial Procedure, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Sessions of courts of the United States (except the Supreme Court) shall be held only at places where the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts provides accommodations, or where suitable accommodations are furnished without cost to the judicial branch.
(b)The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall provide accommodations, including chambers and courtrooms, only at places where regular sessions of court are authorized by law to be held, but only if the judicial council of the appropriate circuit has approved the accommodations as necessary.
(c)The limitations and restrictions contained in subsection (b) of this section shall not prevent the Director from furnishing chambers to circuit judges at places within the circuit other than where regular sessions of court are authorized by law to be held, when the judicial council of the circuit approves.
(d)The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall provide permanent accommodations for the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and for the United States Court of Federal Claims only at the District of Columbia. However, each such court may hold regular and special sessions at other places utilizing the accommodations which the Director provides to other courts.
(e)The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall provide accommodations for probation officers, pretrial service officers, and Federal Public Defender Organizations at such places as may be approved by the judicial council of the appropriate circuit.
(f)Upon the request of the Director, the Administrator of General Services is authorized and directed to provide the accommodations the Director requests, and to close accommodations which the Director recommends for closure with the approval of the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1992—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102–572 substituted “United States Court of Federal Claims” for “United States Claims Court”. 1988—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 100–702 substituted “within the circuit other than where regular sessions of court are authorized by law to be held,” for “where Federal facilities are available”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1992 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 102–572 effective Oct. 29, 1992, see section 911 of Pub. L. 102–572, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.

Effective Date

Section effective Oct. 1, 1982, see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1982 Amendment note under section 171 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

28 U.S.C. § 462

Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure

Last Updated

Aug 21, 2026

Release point: 119-102