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<PRE>[DOCID: f:s1892enr.txt]
        S.1892

                       One Hundred Fifth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the twenty-seventh day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-
                                  eight


                                 An Act


 
     To provide that a person closely related to a judge of a court 
    exercising judicial power under article III of the United States 
 Constitution (other than the Supreme Court) may not be appointed as a 
            judge of the same court, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. LIMITATION ON CLOSELY RELATED PERSONS SERVING AS FEDERAL 
JUDGES ON THE SAME COURT.
    (a) In General.--Section 458 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended--
        (1) by inserting ``(a)(1)'' before ``No person''; and
        (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) With respect to the appointment of a judge of a court 
exercising judicial power under article III of the United States 
Constitution (other than the Supreme Court), subsection (b) shall apply 
in lieu of this subsection.
    ``(b)(1) In this subsection, the term--
        ``(A) `same court' means--
            ``(i) in the case of a district court, the court of a 
        single judicial district; and
            ``(ii) in the case of a court of appeals, the court of 
        appeals of a single circuit; and
        ``(B) `member'--
            ``(i) means an active judge or a judge retired in senior 
        status under section 371(b); and
            ``(ii) shall not include a retired judge, except as 
        described under clause (i).
    ``(2) No person may be appointed to the position of judge of a 
court exercising judicial power under article III of the United States 
Constitution (other than the Supreme Court) who is related by affinity 
or consanguinity within the degree of first cousin to any judge who is 
a member of the same court.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--This Act shall take effect on the date of 
enactment of this Act and shall apply only to any individual whose 
nomination is submitted to the Senate on or after such date.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.

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