Responding to the fact that the Fifth Circuit had become the busiest court of appeals in the country, Congress in 1980 divided the circuit, keeping Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi in the Fifth Circuit, and moving Alabama, Georgia, and Florida to the newly-established Eleventh Circuit, effective October 1, 1981. The circuit split was the culmination of nearly two decades of congressional debate on the issue, much of which focused on how the split would impact the appellate court's civil rights jurisprudence. Congress also began in the 1960s to consider proposals to split the large Ninth Circuit. While Congress has never enacted such a change, some policymakers have continued to advodate a split.
See also:
Landmark Legislation: Eleventh Circuit