The United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (J.P.M.L. or the Panel) is a special body within the United States federal court system which manages multidistrict litigation. It was established by Congress in 1968 by , and has the authority to determine whether civil actions pending in two or more federal judicial districts should be transferred to a single federal district court for pretrial proceedings.. If such cases are determined to involve one or more common questions of fact and are transferred, the panel will then select the district court and assign a judge or judges to preside over the litigation. The purpose of the transfer or "centralization" process is to conserve the resources of the parties and their counsel, as well as the judiciary, thus avoiding duplication of discovery and preventing inconsistent pretrial rulings.

The Chief Justice of the United States, currently John Roberts, appoints the members of the panel, which is composed of no more than seven United States federal judges serving on either district courts or courts of appeals. All panel members must be from different judicial circuits. In addition to their participation on the panel, the members continue to serve as judges for the courts to which they were originally appointed. The panel convenes hearings in various locations around the country to facilitate the participation of parties and their counsel. The Office of the Clerk of the Panel is located at the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building in Washington, D.C.

As of September 30, 2018, the Panel has centralized 1,722 dockets involving more than 673,000 individual cases. There have been 1,131 additional docket requests that were not centralized. These dockets encompass litigation categories as diverse as securities fraud, drugs and other products liability cases, intellectual property infringement, antitrust law violations, airplane crashes, employment practices and consumer data security breaches.

The panel also has the additional responsibility of centralizing multicircuit petitions for review: petitions for review of a government agency order or decision which are currently pending in two or more federal courts of appeals.. The panel has delegated this task to its clerk, who selects a court of appeals by lottery (i.e., spinning a drum and selecting a number at random).Rule 25.5 of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (as filed October 4, 2016). Before Congress created the random lottery procedure by statute in 1988, parties litigating in support of and against controversial government agency decisions would race to file in their preferred court of appeals in accordance with the traditional rule that the appropriate venue was usually where a petition for review was first filed.

Members of the panel

Since the panel was established in 1968, it has been composed of the following 57 judges:

Name Lifespan Date appointed End date Chair term Court Circuit Appointed by1904–19751968–1975W.D. Okla. (1937–1940)10th Cir. (1940–1975)10th Cir.Earl Warren1905–19991975–19785th Cir. (1957–1999)5th Cir.1901–1988—S.D.N.Y. (1950–1988)2nd Cir.1905–1986—N.D. Ill. (1958–1986)7th Cir.1909–1992—W.D. Mo. (1961–1992)8th Cir.1912–1991—E.D. Pa. (1961–1991)3rd Cir.1905–1999—N.D. Cal. (1962–1997)9th Cir.1920–19931980–1990D. Mass. (1960–1993)1st Cir.Warren E. Burger1905–1994—E.D. Mo. (1947–1994)8th Cir.1922–2005—E.D. Pa. (1967–2005)3rd Cir.1907–19791978–1979S.D.N.Y. (1971–1974)2nd Cir. (1974–1979)2nd Cir.1911–2003—D. Md. (1961–2003)4th Cir.1913–1994—N.D. Cal. (1970–1994)9th Cir.1914–2006—E.D. Okla. (1961–2006)10th Cir.1934–2008—N.D. Ala. (1970–2000)5th Cir. (to 1981)11th Cir. (from 1981)1914–2006—S.D. Ind. (1961–2006)7th Cir.1906–2004—S.D.N.Y. (1967–2004)2nd Cir.1922–2012—E.D. Pa. (1978–2012)3rd Cir.1918–2000—N.D. Tex. (1968–2000)5th Cir.William Rehnquist1922–20081990–2000E.D. Mo. (1973–2008)8th Cir.1919–2005—E.D. Va. (1967–1998)4th Cir.1925–2020—S.D. Cal. (1972–2020)9th Cir.1925–2008—N.D. Tex. (1979–2008)5th Cir.1922–2014—D. Wyo. (1975–2014)10th Cir.1929–2019—N.D. Ill. (1975–2019)7th Cir.1927–2024—E.D. Pa. (1972–2001)3rd Cir.1929–2024—S.D.N.Y. (1983–2024)2nd Cir.1934–20222000–2007M.D. Fla. (1971–2022)11th Cir.1929–2004—E.D. La. (1976–2004)5th Cir.1934–2025—D.R.I. (1982–1986)1st Cir. (1986–2025)1st Cir.1950–present—W.D. Tenn. (1983–2002)6th Cir. (2002–present)6th Cir.1928–present—N.D. Cal. (1986–2014)9th Cir.1942–2023—D. Md. (1985–2023)4th Cir.1950–present—N.D. Ind. (1985–present)7th Cir.1949–present—D. Kan. (1992–present)10th Cir.1938–present—N.D. Iowa (1986–1991)8th Cir. (1991–present)8th Cir.1940–present—E.D. Pa. (1984–1987)3rd Cir. (1987–present)3rd Cir.John Roberts1948–20152007–2014W.D. Ky. (1992–2015)6th Cir.1941–present—N.D. Tex. (1994–2013)5th Cir.1938–present—E.D. Cal. (1997–2011)9th Cir.1937–2011—E.D.N.Y. (1993–2011)2nd Cir.1947–present—S.D.N.Y. (1995–2013)2nd Cir.1955–present—D.N.H. (1992–present)1st Cir.1947–present—E.D. Pa. (1994–1997)3rd Cir. (1997–present)3rd Cir.1941–present—N.D. Cal. (1997–present)9th Cir.1944–present—S.D.N.Y. (1994–present)2nd Cir.1950–present2014–2019E.D. La. (1994–present)5th Cir.1948–present—D.D.C. (1999–present)D.C. Cir.1960–present—N.D. Ala. (2003–2026)11th Cir.1952–present—E.D. Mo. (1994–present)8th Cir.1956–presentpresent2019–presentE.D. Ky. (2001–present)6th Cir.1938–presentpresent—D. Mass. (1992–present)1st Cir.1956–presentpresent—N.D. Ill. (1999–present)7th Cir.1946–presentpresent—D.S.C. (1990–present)4th Cir.1950–present—S.D. Cal. (2004–2026)9th Cir.1939–presentpresent—D. Utah (1997–present)10th Cir.1963–presentpresent—D.N.J. (2014–present)3rd Cir.

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