Home » Information For… » Media & Public Information
The Circuit Executive’s Office is the main point of contact for all media and public information requests for the Federal Circuit. The following information is provided to assist in accurate coverage of the Federal Circuit and to allow for the timely providing of information about the Federal Circuit.
The Circuit Executive’s Office neither provides direct contact information for, nor transfers calls directly to, judges or chambers staff. Instead, please submit any requests through the website’s contact form and include any deadlines in the details of the request. The court will respond to all requests in a timely manner.
The court provides the following guidelines to assist members of the media when contacting the Federal Circuit.
A great deal of information about the Federal Circuit is available on this website. Please take a moment to browse and to search the site and this page before contacting the court.
When requesting case data or other research information, please first review the information already available on our Reports and Statistics page. If the information you would like is not provided, please submit a request, which will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Please note that the court only provides aggregated case data and that some large or unusual data requests that require excess staff resources may not be accommodated.
Individual researchers working on defined research projects intended for scholarly work can request PACER fee exemptions (external) for accessible Federal Circuit cases. The request should be limited in scope and not be intended for redistribution on the internet or for commercial purposes. Absent sufficient explanation, the Federal Circuit typically will not approve an exemption to last for more than a one-year period. Email requests to accountservices@cafc.uscourts.gov.
Visit PACER’s Fee Exemption Request for Researchers (external) page for requesting exemptions in multiple federal courts.
Please submit any requests for interviews or invitations to events in writing through the Circuit Executive’s Office. Requests are timely forwarded to chambers and are reviewed in the ordinary course of business. Please include any deadlines in the details of the request.
Please note that the Circuit Executive’s Office does not forward general interview requests or invitations that appear to be open-ended (e.g., “Is any judge available?”).
The Federal Circuit offers both an email subscription service (external) and RSS feeds that let you stay up to date on information from the court. All subscriptions types are free and available to the public.
We offer the following email subscription lists.
The Federal Circuit hears oral arguments at the beginning of every month. Oral arguments are open for the public. There is no designated area for members of the media and press credentials are not requirement in the courtrooms. Recordings of arguments are released the same day as the cases are argued.
Since March 2012, case information and documents are available through PACER (external). Members of the media may be interested in registering for Public Interested Person account access. Opinions are docketed between 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. daily and are posted on the court’s website at 11:00 a.m. More detailed information about the different stages in the life of an appeal is available in the Case Information section of the website. The following pages may be of particular benefit.