The court of appeals for the federal circuit is<em> located in Washington, D.C.,</em> at the Howard T. Markey National Courts Building.
It is one of thirteen United States courts of appeals. It was created by Congress with the passage of the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1982 which merged the U.S. Court of Customs and Patent Appeals and the U.S. Court of Claims. The jurisdiction of this court is determined entirely of the subject of the laws it hears, and not on the geographical location from which the appeal originated.
The job of the Federal Circuit is to hear appeals from the United States district courts related to:
- non-torts monetary complaints against the federal government,
-all appeals from decision from any U.S. district courts regarding the patent laws (with some exceptions).