The committee was created on June 3, 1813, for the purpose of considering legislation related to the
judicial system. This committee approved impeachment resolutions/
articles of impeachment against presidents in four instances: against
Andrew Johnson (
in 1867),
Richard Nixon (
in 1974),
Bill Clinton (
in 1998), and
Donald Trump (
in 2019). In the
115th Congress, the chair of the committee was
Republican Bob Goodlatte of
Virginia, and the ranking minority member was initially
Democrat John Conyers of
Michigan. On November 26, 2017, Conyers stepped down from his position as ranking member, while he faced an ethics investigation. On November 28, 2017,
Jerrold Nadler of
New York was named as acting ranking member. In the
116th Congress, the House flipped from Republican to Democratic control.
Doug Collins, a Republican from
Georgia's 9th congressional district, became ranking member and served from 2019 to 2020. In early 2020, Collins stepped down from his leadership position when he became a candidate in the
2020 special election held to replace retiring U.S. senator Johnny Isakson. Under House Republican rules, members must relinquish leadership positions if they launch a bid for another office. Collins was succeeded as ranking member by Jordan, who represents
Ohio's 4th congressional district, but who has never taken a bar examination or practiced law.
Predecessor committees •
Claims: Functions merged in 1946 •
Immigration and Naturalization: Functions merged in 1946 •
Internal Security: Functions merged in 1975 •
Un-American Activities: Functions merged into
Internal Security in 1969 •
Patents: Functions merged in 1946 •
Revision of Laws: Functions merged in 1946 •
War Claims: Functions merged in 1946 == Members, 119th Congress ==