28 U.S.C. § 791
Section 791 · Clerk
Amended 3 times on record
Applied in 50 court decisions — leading case Momand v. Universal Film Exchange, Inc. (1942)
Most recently applied in SEC v. Fowler (July 2021)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) The United States Court of Federal Claims may appoint a clerk, who shall be subject to removal by the court. The clerk, with the approval of the court, may appoint necessary deputies and employees in such numbers as may be approved by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. Such deputies and employees shall be subject to removal by the clerk with the approval of the court.
(b) The clerk shall pay into the Treasury all fees, costs and other moneys collected by him. He shall make returns thereof to the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts under regulations prescribed by him.
(c) On the first day of every regular session of Congress, the clerk shall transmit to Congress a full and complete statement of all the judgments rendered by the court during the previous year, showing the dates and amounts thereof and the parties in whose favor they were rendered, together with a brief synopsis of the nature of the claims upon which they were rendered, and a statement of the costs taxed in each case.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §§244, 248, 283a and 289 (Mar. 3, 1911, ch. 231, §§139, 143, 183, 36 Stat. 1136, 1142; June 10, 1921, ch. 18, §§301, 302, 310, 42 Stat. 23, 25, Mar. 3, 1933, ch. 212, title II, §19, 47 Stat. 1519; May 10, 1934, ch. 277, §512(b), 48 Stat. 759).
This section consolidates a part of sections 244 and 248 with sections 283a and 289, all of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed.
Provisions in section 248 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., for distribution by the clerk of copies of the court's decisions is incorporated in section 415 of this title.
Certain provisions of section 244 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., relating to the bailiff and the chief messenger of the Court of Claims, and powers and duties of the clerk, his deputies and assistants, are incorporated in sections 795 and 956 of this title.
A provision in section 244 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., relating to the oath of the clerk of such court was omitted as covered by section 951 of this title.
Word “clerk” was substituted for “chief clerk” to harmonize with such designation of clerks of all other courts.
Provision that such officers shall be under the direction of the court in the performance of their duties was omitted as superfluous.
Provision in section 244 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., that the clerk and assistant shall be subject to removal by the Court was substituted for the grounds of misconduct or incapacity. This change is in harmony with like provisions as to the clerks of other courts.
Section 289 of title 28, U.S.C., 1940 ed., required the Attorney General to duplicate the reporting to Congress of judgments which are furnished by the clerk. The revised section eliminates such duplication by requiring the clerk to transmit the information to Congress.
Words “Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts” were substituted for “Attorney General,” in view of the act of August 7, 1939, ch. 501, §6, 53 Stat. 1226, 28 U.S.C., 1940 ed., following §446.
As revised, this section is consistent with similar provisions as to clerks of district courts and the courts of appeals in chapters 47 and 49 of this title.
Changes in phraseology were made.
Amendments
1992—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–572 substituted “United States Court of Federal Claims” for “United States Claims Court”.
1982—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 97–164 substituted “The United States Claims Court may appoint a clerk, who shall be subject to removal by the court” for “The Court of Claims may appoint a clerk and an assistant clerk, each of whom shall be subject to removal by the court” and “The clerk, with the approval of the court, may appoint necessary deputies and employees in such numbers as may be approved by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. Such deputies and employees shall be subject to removal by the clerk with the approval of the court” for “The court shall report any such removal and the cause thereof to Congress as soon as possible”.
Effective Date of 1992 Amendment
Amendment 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 of 1982 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 97–164 effective Oct. 1, 1982, see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.
Cross References
Compensation and expenses of clerks of court, their deputies, etc., see section 604 of this title.
Oath and bond of clerks and deputies, see section 951 of this title.