Copyright
Federal civil · Intellectual Property · 105,818 cases filed and closed (1988–present).
105,818
Cases filed
81.5%
Ended before a merits judgment
86,267 of 105,818 cases
73.6%
Plaintiff win
of 19,551 merits judgments
14.3%
Defendant win
of merits judgments
How they closed
- Dismissed48.7%
- Settled28.4%
- Plaintiff win13.6%
- Defendant win2.6%
- Other2.3%
- Transferred1.6%
- Decided — other1.5%
- Mixed0.8%
- Remanded0.5%
Where you file matters
The same claim resolves differently across districts. Plaintiff-win rate among merits judgments, busiest courts first.
- District Court, C.D. California16,130 cases · 2,538 decided75.1%
- District Court, S.D. New York12,428 cases · 1,606 decided64.3%
- District Court, N.D. Illinois5,005 cases · 836 decided80.5%
- District Court, N.D. California4,398 cases · 785 decided59.6%
- District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania4,275 cases · 355 decided83.4%
- District Court, D. New Jersey3,702 cases · 610 decided81.1%
- District Court, E.D. New York3,324 cases · 515 decided80.4%
- District Court, S.D. Florida3,011 cases · 599 decided84.1%
- District Court, M.D. Florida2,929 cases · 502 decided86.9%
- District Court, S.D. Texas2,609 cases · 614 decided60.1%
- District Court, E.D. Michigan2,142 cases · 457 decided74.6%
- District Court, D. Maryland2,076 cases · 252 decided81%
- District Court, N.D. Texas2,067 cases · 498 decided66.7%
- District Court, D. Colorado2,038 cases · 287 decided76.7%
- District Court, W.D. Texas1,995 cases · 480 decided74.2%
- District Court, D. Massachusetts1,927 cases · 441 decided68.7%
- District Court, E.D. Virginia1,813 cases · 203 decided76.8%
- District Court, N.D. Georgia1,577 cases · 408 decided68.9%
- District Court, S.D. California1,440 cases · 314 decided66.6%
- District Court, W.D. Washington1,353 cases · 302 decided76.8%
- District Court, S.D. Ohio1,241 cases · 199 decided58.8%
- District Court, D. Arizona1,232 cases · 377 decided78%
- District Court, M.D. Tennessee1,207 cases · 192 decided65.1%
- District Court, N.D. Ohio1,189 cases · 197 decided78.2%
- District Court, D. Connecticut1,089 cases · 269 decided71.4%
- District Court, D. Minnesota1,034 cases · 185 decided62.2%
- District Court, D. Oregon972 cases · 311 decided83%
- District Court, D. Nevada957 cases · 197 decided67.5%
- District Court, E.D. California894 cases · 135 decided66.7%
- District Court, District of Columbia737 cases · 101 decided44.6%
Source: FJC Integrated Database (public domain), via CourtListener — federal civil cases filed and terminated, 1988–present. Figures are descriptive statistics about how cases of a given type have closed in a given court. They describe the historical record — not a prediction or assessment of any specific case. Not legal advice.