The D.C. Circuit is the United States Court of Appeals for the geographic circuit consisting of Washington, D.C.[1] It should not be confused with other courts called "Court of Appeals" in Washington, D.C., such as the Federal Circuit and the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
As of 2024, the D.C. Circuit is 7-4 Democrat-appointee controlled among active judges, which renders it impossible to obtain a conservative ruling that will not then be overruled by a liberal en banc sitting.
The D.C. Circuit is notable for handling many political-type matters involving the federal government, and as the court from which roughly half of the Supreme Court Justices first join the federal judiciary. No senators represent D.C. and thus it is easier to confirm more ideological nominees there, such as the future U.S. Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Multiple Republican appointees to the Supreme Court have also come from this D.C. Circuit, including Robert Bork (blocked from confirmation by liberal senators), Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, and Brett Kavanaugh.