The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 federal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice

United States Department of Justice

The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...

 (see ). The office of U.S. Marshal is the oldest federal law enforcement office in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

; it was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789

Judiciary Act of 1789

The United States Judiciary Act of 1789 was a landmark statute adopted on September 24, 1789 in the first session of the First United States Congress establishing the U.S. federal judiciary...

. It assumed its current name in 1969.

The Marshals Service is part of the executive

Executive (government)

Executive branch of Government is the part of government that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the idea of the separation of powers.In many countries, the term...

 branch of government, and is the enforcement arm of the United States federal courts

United States federal courts

The United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government.-Categories:...

. The U.S. Marshals are responsible for the protection of court officers and buildings and the effective operation of the judiciary

Judiciary

The judiciary is the system of courts that interprets and applies the law in the name of the state. The judiciary also provides a mechanism for the resolution of disputes...

.