United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
(E.D. Va.)
Location	Albert V. Bryan U.S. Courthouse (Alexandria) More locations Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse (Norfolk) Richmond Newport News
Appeals to	Fourth Circuit
Established	September 24, 1789
Judges	11
Chief Judge	Mark Steven Davis
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney	Lindsey Halligan (interim)
U.S. Marshal	Nick Edward Proffitt
www.vaed.uscourts.gov

The Norfolk courthouse for the United States District Court, Eastern District of Virginia

The Richmond courthouse for the United States District Court, Eastern District of Virginia

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA; in case citations, E.D. Va.) is one of two United States district courts serving the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its jurisdiction includes over 85 percent of the state's population, including the metropolitan areas of Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, and Richmond. Courthouses are located in Alexandria, Norfolk, Richmond, and Newport News.

Known widely as "the rocket docket", the Eastern District of Virginia has been the fastest federal trial court in the country for over 50 years. ^{[1] [2]} Adopting the maxim that "justice delayed is justice denied" as its unofficial motto, the court aims to complete cases within one year, regardless of complexity. It schedules trials on weekends and holidays and maintains a virtual ban on continuance. ^{[3] [4] [5]} The court utilizes a unique "master docket" to expedite cases: rather than assign individual caseloads, when a motion is up for consideration or a trial is scheduled to start, the matter will be handled by whichever judge is available. Judges are assigned only for patent cases and in rare exceptions. ^[6]

With a jurisdiction which includes the Pentagon, much of the Intelligence Community, and Naval Station Norfolk, the world's largest naval base, the EDVA is a fixture in U.S. national security law, handling a large portion of the nation's espionage and terrorism cases. More than 1 in 5 terrorism charges filed in the United States since 1995 were filed in the EDVA. ^{[7] [8] [9]} One of the district's senior judges also presides over the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia wields one of the largest federal prosecutor offices in the country, staffed by over 300 attorneys and support staff. ^[7]

Appeals from the Eastern District of Virginia are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit.

History

The United States District Court for the District of Virginia was one of the original 13 courts established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, 1  Stat.   73, on September 24, 1789. ^{[10] [11]}

On February 13, 1801, the Judiciary Act of 1801, 2  Stat.   89, divided Virginia into three judicial districts: the District of Virginia, which included the counties west of the Tidewater and south of the Rappahannock River; the District of Norfolk, which included the Tidewater counties south of the Rappahannock; and the District of Potomac, which included the counties north and east of the Rappahannock as well as Maryland counties along the Potomac. ^[11] Just over a year later, on March 8, 1802, the Judiciary Act of 1801 was repealed and Virginia became a single district again, 2  Stat.   132, effective July 1, 1802. ^[11]

The District of Virginia was subdivided into Eastern and Western Districts on February 4, 1819, by 3  Stat.   478. ^{[10] [11]} At that time, West Virginia was still part of Virginia, and was encompassed in Virginia's Western District, while the Eastern District essentially covered what is now the entire state of Virginia. With the division of West Virginia from Virginia during the American Civil War, the Western District of Virginia became the District of West Virginia, and those parts of the Western District that were not part of West Virginia were combined with the Eastern District to again form a single District of Virginia on June 11, 1864, by 13  Stat.   124. ^[11] Congress again divided Virginia into the Eastern and Western Districts on February 3, 1871, by 16  Stat.   403. ^[11]

Courts at Richmond are located in the Spottswood W. Robinson III and Robert R. Merhige Jr. Federal Courthouse, ^[12] having previously been held in the historic Lewis F. Powell Jr. United States Courthouse.

The Rocket Docket

The Eastern District of Virginia is the originator of the term "rocket docket", which has since been applied to various other courts at times. The culture of speed was embedded in the EDVA by two judges who served on the court in the 1960's: Albert V. Bryan Jr., who often ruled on cases on the spot after motions were argued, and Walter E. Hoffman, who was known for scheduling trials for weekends, holidays and reportedly once on Christmas Day. ^[4] Current chief judge Mark S. Davis has said that the current bench is driven in part by a shared belief in the maxim that "justice delayed is justice denied", but that the "expectations of the [EDVA] bar" nevertheless ensure that the court continues to maintain its famed pace. ^[4]

Jurisdiction

Map of the United States District Courts in Virginia, showing the boundaries of the Eastern and Western Districts, and their divisions.

The Eastern District of Virginia court's jurisdiction covers slightly over six million people, comprising approximately 85% of the state's population. Its jurisdiction is grouped into four geographic divisions:

Alexandria Division

View of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at Alexandria, Virginia.

The Alexandria Division covers the counties of suburban Washington, D.C.: Arlington, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, and Stafford, and includes the independent cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Manassas, Manassas Park, and Falls Church.

Richmond Division

The Richmond Division comprises the counties of Amelia, Brunswick, Caroline, Charles City, Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, Essex, Goochland, Greensville, Hanover, Henrico, James City, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lancaster, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Middlesex, New Kent, Northumberland, Nottoway, Powhatan, Prince Edward, Prince George, Richmond, Spotsylvania, Surry, Sussex, and Westmoreland, as well as independent cities such as Colonial Heights and Fredericksburg. ^[13]

Norfolk Division

Norfolk Division includes the counties of Accomack, Northampton, Isle of Wight, Southampton, and independent cities such as Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach.

Newport News Division

The Newport News Division includes the counties of Gloucester, Mathews, York County, James City and cities such as Hampton, Newport News, Poquoson, and Williamsburg.

United States Attorney

The U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was Erik S. Siebert, ^[14] serving as prosecution for criminal cases brought by the federal government, and representing the United States in civil cases in the court. The U.S. Attorney's office also manages the Project Safe Neighborhoods program within the district to reduce gun violence, and is involved with federal initiatives on drug trafficking, terrorism, cybercrime, and the prevention of elder care abuse. ^[15]

Current judges

As of July 30,2025 ^[update] :

#	Title	Judge	Duty station	Born	Term of service			Appointed by
					Active	Chief	Senior
40	Chief Judge	Mark Steven Davis	Norfolk Newport News	1962	2008–present	2018–present	—	G.W. Bush
33	District Judge	Leonie Brinkema	Alexandria	1944	1993–present	—	—	Clinton
43	District Judge	Arenda Wright Allen	Norfolk Newport News	1960	2011–present	—	—	Obama
44	District Judge	M. Hannah Lauck	Richmond	1963	2014–present	—	—	Obama
45	District Judge	Rossie D. Alston Jr.	Alexandria	1957	2019–present	—	—	Trump
46	District Judge	David J. Novak	Richmond	1961	2019–present	—	—	Trump
47	District Judge	Roderick C. Young	Richmond	1966	2020–present	—	—	Trump
48	District Judge	Patricia Tolliver Giles	Alexandria	1973	2021–present	—	—	Biden
49	District Judge	Michael S. Nachmanoff	Alexandria	1968	2021–present	—	—	Biden
50	District Judge	Elizabeth Hanes	Norfolk Newport News	1978	2022–present	—	—	Biden
51	District Judge	Jamar K. Walker	Norfolk Newport News	1986	2023–present	—	—	Biden
27	Senior Judge	Claude M. Hilton	Alexandria	1940	1985–2005	1997–2004	2005–present	Reagan
30	Senior Judge	Rebecca Beach Smith	Norfolk Newport News	1949	1989–2019	2011–2018	2019–present	G.H.W. Bush
32	Senior Judge	Robert E. Payne	Richmond	1941	1992–2007	—	2007–present	G.H.W. Bush
34	Senior Judge	Raymond Alvin Jackson	Norfolk Newport News	1949	1993–2021	—	2021–present	Clinton
37	Senior Judge	Henry E. Hudson	Richmond	1947	2002–2018	—	2018–present	G.W. Bush
41	Senior Judge	Anthony Trenga	Alexandria	1949	2008–2021	—	2021–present	G.W. Bush
42	Senior Judge	John A. Gibney Jr.	Richmond	1951	2010–2021	—	2021–present	Obama

Former judges

#	Judge	State	Born–died	Active service	Chief Judge	Senior status	Appointed by	Reason for termination
1	St. George Tucker	VA	1752–1827	1813–1825 [Note 1]	—	—	Madison	resignation
2	George Hay	VA	1765–1830	1825–1830 [Note 2]	—	—	J.Q. Adams	death
3	Philip P. Barbour	VA	1783–1841	1830–1836 [Note 3]	—	—	Jackson	elevation to Supreme Court
4	Peter Vivian Daniel	VA	1784–1860	1836–1841	—	—	Jackson	elevation to Supreme Court
5	John Y. Mason	VA	1799–1859	1841–1844	—	—	Van Buren	resignation
6	James Dandridge Halyburton	VA	1803–1879	1844–1861	—	—	Tyler	resignation
7	John Curtiss Underwood	VA	1809–1873	1863–1864 [Note 4] 1871–1873 [Note 5]	—	—	Lincoln Operation of law	reassignment to D. Va. death
8	Robert William Hughes	VA	1821–1901	1874–1898	—	—	Grant	retirement
9	Edmund Waddill Jr.	VA	1855–1931	1898–1921	—	—	McKinley	elevation to 4th Cir.
10	Duncan Lawrence Groner	VA	1873–1957	1921–1931	—	—	Harding	elevation to D.C. Cir.
11	Luther B. Way	VA	1879–1943	1931–1943	—	—	Hoover	death
12	Robert Nelson Pollard	VA	1880–1954	1936–1947	—	1947–1954	F. Roosevelt	death
13	Charles Sterling Hutcheson	VA	1894–1969	1944–1959	1948–1959	1959–1969	F. Roosevelt	death
14	Albert Vickers Bryan	VA	1899–1984	1947–1961	1959–1961	—	Truman	elevation to 4th Cir.
15	Walter Edward Hoffman	VA	1907–1996	1954–1974	1961–1973	1974–1996	Eisenhower	death
16	Oren Ritter Lewis	VA	1902–1983	1960–1974	—	1974–1983	Eisenhower	death
17	John D. Butzner Jr.	VA	1917–2006	1962–1967	—	—	Kennedy	elevation to 4th Cir.
18	Richard Boykin Kellam	VA	1909–1996	1967–1981	1973–1979	1981–1996	L. Johnson	death
19	John Ashton MacKenzie	VA	1917–2010	1967–1985	1979–1985	1985–1998	L. Johnson	retirement
20	Robert R. Merhige Jr.	VA	1919–2005	1967–1986	—	1986–1998	L. Johnson	retirement
21	Albert Vickers Bryan Jr.	VA	1926–2019	1971–1991	1985–1991	1991–2019	Nixon	death
22	David Dortch Warriner	VA	1929–1986	1974–1986	—	—	Nixon	death
23	Joseph Calvitt Clarke Jr.	VA	1920–2004	1974–1991	—	1991–2004	Ford	death
24	Richard Leroy Williams	VA	1923–2011	1980–1992	—	1992–2011	Carter	death
25	James C. Cacheris	VA	1933–2025	1981–1998	1991–1997	1998–2018	Reagan	retirement
26	Robert G. Doumar	VA	1930–2023	1981–1996	—	1996–2023	Reagan	death
28	James R. Spencer	VA	1949–present	1986–2014	2004–2011	2014–2017	Reagan	retirement
29	T. S. Ellis III	VA	1940–2025	1987–2007	—	2007–2025	Reagan	death
31	Henry Coke Morgan Jr.	VA	1935–2022	1992–2004	—	2004–2022	G.H.W. Bush	death
35	Jerome B. Friedman	VA	1943–present	1997–2010	—	2010–2011	Clinton	retirement
36	Gerald Bruce Lee	VA	1952–present	1998–2017	—	—	Clinton	retirement
38	Walter D. Kelley Jr.	VA	1955–present	2004–2008	—	—	G.W. Bush	resignation
39	Liam O'Grady	VA	1950–present	2007–2020	—	2020–2023	G.W. Bush	retirement

1. Initially appointed to the United States District Court for the District of Virginia, reassigned by operation of law to the Eastern District of Virginia on February 4, 1819.
2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 13, 1825, confirmed by the United States Senate on March 31, 1826, and received commission the same day.
3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 14, 1830, confirmed by the Senate on December 16, 1830, and received commission the same day.
4. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1864, confirmed by the Senate on January 25, 1864, and received commission the same day.
5. Reassigned from the United States District Court for the District of Virginia on June 11, 1864.

Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.

A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.

When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

Succession of seats

Seat 1 Seat reassigned from the District of Virginia on February 4, 1819 by 3 Stat. 478 Tucker 1819–1825 Hay 1825–1830 Barbour 1830–1836 Daniel 1836–1841 Mason 1841–1844 Halyburton 1844–1861 Underwood 1863–1864 Seat reassigned to the District of Virginia on June 11, 1864 by 13 Stat. 124 Seat reassigned from the District of Virginia on February 3, 1871 by 16 Stat. 403 Underwood 1871–1873 Hughes 1874–1898 Waddill Jr. 1898–1921 Groner 1921–1931 Way 1931–1943 Hutcheson 1944–1959 Lewis 1960–1974 Warriner 1974–1986 Smith 1989–2019 Young 2020–present

Seat 2 Seat established on August 2, 1935 by 49 Stat. 508 Pollard 1936–1947 Bryan 1947–1961 Butzner Jr. 1962–1967 Merhige Jr. 1967–1986 Ellis III 1987–2007 Davis 2008–present

Seat 3 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 Hoffman 1954–1974 Clarke Jr. 1974–1991 Payne 1992–2007 Gibney Jr. 2010–2021 Hanes 2022–present

Seat 4 Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 Kellam 1967–1981 Doumar 1981–1996 Friedman 1997–2010 Allen 2011–present

Seat 5 Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 MacKenzie 1967–1985 Spencer 1986–2014 Lauck 2014–present

Seat 6 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Bryan Jr. 1971–1991 Brinkema 1993–present

Seat 7 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Williams 1980–1992 Jackson 1993–2021 Walker 2023–present

Seat 8 Seat established on October 20, 1978 by 92 Stat. 1629 Cacheris 1981–1998 Lee 1998–2017 Alston Jr. 2019–present

Seat 9 Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 Hilton 1985–2005 O'Grady 2007–2020 Giles 2021–present

Seat 10 Seat established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 (temporary) Seat made permanent on November 2, 2002 by 116 Stat. 1758 Morgan Jr. 1992–2004 Kelley Jr. 2004–2008 Trenga 2008–2021 Nachmanoff 2021–present

Seat 11 Seat established on December 21, 2000 by 114 Stat. 2762 Hudson 2002–2018 Novak 2019–present

Notable cases

The Eastern District of Virginia has handled many notable cases, including:

• West v. Bliley , ^[16] striking down Virginia's white primary, 33 F.2d 177 (E.D. Va., 1929)
• United States v. Zacarias Moussaoui , ^[17] No. 01-455-A (E.D. Va.)
• United States v. Ahmed Omar Abu Ali
• United States v. John Walker Lindh , ^[17] No. 02-37-A (E.D. Va.)
• Yaser Hamdi v. Donald Rumsfeld , ^[17] No. 02-439 (E.D. Va.)
• United States v. Michael Vick , ^[17] No. 3:07CR274 (E.D. Va) (the Bad Newz Kennels dogfighting case)
• eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C. , 271 F. Supp. 2d 789 (E.D. Va. 2002) (in which the court took the position, eventually upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, that a prevailing plaintiff in a patent suit is not necessarily entitled to injunctive relief)
• Extradition of Kevin Dahlgren , ^[18] charged with committing mass murder in Brno, Czech Republic in 2013
• Bostic v. Rainey
• Matter of Baby K , controversial ruling to provide life-sustaining care to an anencephalic newborn.
• United States v. Paul J. Manafort Jr.
• Chelsea Manning's contempt of court case
• United States v Daniel Hale
• United States v Javaid Perwaiz
• United States v. Randall Todd Royer, Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Hamdi, Masoud Ahmad Khan, Yong Ki Kwon, Mohammed Aatique, Seifullah Chapman, Donald Thomas Surratt, Caliph Basha Ibn Abdur-Raheem, Khwaja Mahmood Hasan, and Sabri Benkhala (E.D. Va., 2004)
• Cable News Network L.P. v. CNNews.com , 162 F.Supp.2d 484 (E.D. Va., 2001)
• Petition of Nemetz ^[19]

United States Attorneys

List of U.S. Attorneys since 1831: ^{[20] [21]}

• Thomas E. Burfoot (1831–1833)
• Robert C. Nicholas (1833–1850)
• William T. Joynes (1850–1853)
• John Munford Gregory (1853–1860)
• Patrick H. Aylett (1860–1861)
• A. Judson Crane (1861–1863)
• Lucius H. Chandler (1863–1870)
• Henry H. Wells (1870–1874)
• Lunsford L. Lewis (1874–1882)
• John Sergeant Wise (1882–1883)
• Edmund Waddill Jr. (1883–1885)
• John C. Gibson (1885–1889)
• Thomas R. Borland (1889–1893)
• Francis R. Lassiter (1893–1896)
• William H. White (1896–1898)
• Edgar Allen (1898–1902)
• Lunsford L. Lewis (1902–1905)
• Robert H. Talley (1905)
• Lunsford L. Lewis (1905–1912)
• Duncan Lawrence Groner (1912–1914)
• Richard H. Mann (1914–1919)
• Hiram M. Smith (1914–1920)
• Duncan Lawrence Groner (1920)
• Julien Gunn (1920–1921)
• Duncan Lawrence Groner (1921)
• Paul W. Kear (1921–1931)
• Robert H. Talley (1931–1932)
• Paul W. Kear (1932–1933)
• Charles Sterling Hutcheson (1933–1944)
• Henry Holt (1944–1947)
• George R. Humrickhouse (1947–1951)
• A. Carter Whitehead (1951–1953)
• Lester S. Parsons, Jr. (1953–1957)
• John M. Hollis (1957–1959)
• Joseph S. Bambacus (1959–1961)
• Claude V. Spratley, Jr. (1961–1969)
• Brian P. Gettings (1969–1974)
• David H. Hopkins (1974–1975)
• William B. Cummings (1975–1979)
• Justin W. Williams (1979–1981)
• Elsie L. Munsell (1981–1986)
• Justin W. Williams (1986)
• Henry E. Hudson (1986–1991)
• Kenneth E. Melson (1991)
• Richard Cullen (1991–1993)
• Kenneth E. Melson (1993)
• Helen F. Fahey (1993–2001)
• Kenneth E. Melson (2001)
• Paul McNulty (2001–2006)
• Chuck Rosenberg (2006–2008)
• Dana Boente (2008–2009)
• Neil MacBride (2009–2013)
• Dana Boente (2013–2018)
• Tracy Doherty-McCormick (2018)
• G. Zachary Terwilliger (2018–2021)
• Raj Parekh (2021)
• Jessica D. Aber (2021–2025)
• Erik S. Siebert (2025)
• Lindsey Halligan (2025–present)

See also

• Albert V. Bryan United States Courthouse
• Alexandria City Jail
• Courts of Virginia
• List of current United States district judges
• List of United States federal courthouses in Virginia
• United States Attorney for the District of Virginia

References

1. Rossi, Gene (2023). "Appearing in the Red Glare of the Rocket Docket" (PDF). Litigation . 49 (12). American Bar Association.
2. Carr, Dabney (February 13, 2023). "Why the Original 'Rocket Docket' Will Likely Resume Its Pace". Troutman Pepper Locke. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
3. Glover, R.H. (April 1993). "ROCKET DOCKET". Trial. 29 (4): 45–46, 49–50 – via NCJRS Virtual Library. The court routinely denies all continuances of any kind, and lawyers cannot expect extensions unless they are dead or have a medical certificate that assures death within a few days
4. Tata, Robert M. (June 25, 2024). "After A Brief Hiccup, The 'Rocket Docket' Soars Back To No. 1". Hunton Andrews Kurth . Retrieved October 13, 2025.
5. "The Rocket Docket: The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia" (PDF). DiMuro Ginsburg P.C. 2012.
6. Faulkner, York M. (April 23, 2024). "EDVA Rocket Docket - A Wild Ride Through Genteel Virginia". Mondaq . Archived from the original on October 13, 2025. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
7. MacFarlane, Scott (October 2, 2025). "DOJ fires 2 key prosecutors in eastern Virginia amid turmoil in office that charged Comey - CBS News". CBS News . Retrieved October 13, 2025.
8. "Eastern District of Virginia Civil Division". U.S. Department of Justice . March 18, 2015. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
9. "One in Five International Terrorism Prosecutions in Eastern Virginia". Tracreports. August 8, 2016. Retrieved October 13, 2025.
10. Asbury Dickens, A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America (1852), p. 388.
11. U.S. District Courts of Virginia, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center .
12. "Richmond Courthouse". Archived from the original on March 21, 2013. Retrieved March 8, 2013.
13. 28 U.S.C.   § 127(a)
14. "Erik Siebert appointed Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia" (Press release). Alexandria, Virginia: U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. January 21, 2025. Retrieved January 28, 2025.
15. U.S. Attorney's Office – Eastern District of Virginia – Priorities
16. West v. Bliley , 33F.2d177 (E.D. Va.June 5, 1929).
17. "United States District Court, Eastern District of Virginia, Notable cases". Archived from the original on December 19, 2005. Retrieved March 28, 2006.
18. "Soudní jednání o vydání Kevina Dahlgrena začne 12. září" (in Czech). Týden. August 13, 2013. Retrieved August 13, 2013.
19. "Petition of Nemetz, 485 F. Supp. 470 (E.D. Va. 1980)". Justia Law. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
20. "Bicentennial Celebration" (PDF). www.justice.gov. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
21. "The Political Graveyard: U.S. District Attorneys in Virginia".

External links

• Peters, John O. (2013). From Marshall to Moussaoui: Federal Justice in the Eastern District of Virginia. The Dietz Press. ISBN   9780875171432.

• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia Official Website
• United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Official Website