United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia

Last updated
United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
(S.D. W. Va.)
SDWVseal.png
Location Charleston
More locations
Appeals to Fourth Circuit
EstablishedJanuary 22, 1901
Judges5
Chief Judge Frank W. Volk
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney William S. Thompson
U.S. Marshal Michael Baylous
www.wvsd.uscourts.gov

The United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia (in case citations, S.D. W. Va.) is a federal court in 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).

Contents

The District was established on June 22, 1901. [1]

As of October 13,2021, the United States attorney for the District is William S. Thompson. [2]

Organization of the court

The Southern District spans the counties colored blue on this map. US federal courts in West Virginia.svg
The Southern District spans the counties colored blue on this map.

The United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia is one of two federal judicial districts in West Virginia. [3] Court for the Southern District is held at Beckley, Bluefield, Charleston, and Huntington.

Beckley Division comprises the following counties: Greenbrier, Raleigh, Summers, and Wyoming.

Bluefield Division comprises the following counties: Mercer, McDowell, and Monroe.

Charleston Division comprises the following counties: Boone, Clay, Fayette, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, Nicholas, Roane, Wirt, and Wood.

Huntington Division comprises the following counties: Cabell, Mason, Putnam, and Wayne.

Current judges

As of September 5,2024:

#TitleJudgeDuty stationBornTerm of serviceAppointed by
Active Chief Senior
19Chief Judge Frank W. Volk Beckley 19652019–present2024–present Trump
15District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin Charleston 19421995–present2007–2012 Clinton
16District Judge Robert Charles Chambers Huntington 19521997–present2012–2017 Clinton
17District Judge Thomas E. Johnston Charleston 19672006–present2017–2024 G.W. Bush
18District Judge Irene Berger Charleston 19542009–present Obama
10Senior Judge John Thomas Copenhaver Jr. Charleston 19251976–20182018–present Ford
14Senior Judge David A. Faber Bluefield 19421991–20082002–20072008–present G.H.W. Bush

Former judges

#JudgeStateBorn–diedActive service Chief Judge Senior status Appointed byReason for
termination
1 Benjamin Franklin Keller WV 1857–19211901–1921 McKinley death
2 George Warwick McClintic WV 1866–19421921–19411941–1942 Harding death
3 Harry Evans Watkins WV 1898–19631937–1963 [Note 1] F. Roosevelt death
4 Ben Moore WV 1891–19581941–19581948–1958 F. Roosevelt death
5 John A. Field Jr. WV 1910–19951959–19711959–1971 Eisenhower elevation to 4th Cir.
6 Sidney Lee Christie WV 1903–19741964–1974 [Note 1] 1971–1973 L. Johnson death
7 Dennis Raymond Knapp WV 1912–19981970–19831973–19821983–1998 Nixon death
8 Kenneth Keller Hall WV 1918–19991971–1976 Nixon elevation to 4th Cir.
9 Charles Harold Haden II WV 1937–20041975–2004 [Note 2] 1982–2002 Ford death
11 Robert Jackson Staker WV 1925–20081979–19941994–2005 Carter retirement
12 William Matthew Kidd WV 1918–19981979–1983 Carter reassignment to N.D. W. Va.
13 Elizabeth Virginia Hallanan WV 1925–20041983–19961996–2004 Reagan death
  1. 1 2 Jointly appointed to the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia
  2. From 1975 to 1983, Judge Haden was jointly appointed to the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia.

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

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama</span> United States federal district court in Alabama

The United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama is a United States district court in the Eleventh Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama</span> United States federal district court in Alabama

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama</span> Federal court of the 11th circuit

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida</span> United States federal district court in Florida

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is the federal United States district court with territorial jurisdiction over the southern part of the state of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Eastern District of California</span> U.S. federal district court in California

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of California is a federal court in the Ninth Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia</span> United States federal district court in Georgia

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit.

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio</span> United States federal district court in Ohio

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio is the federal trial court for the northern half of Ohio, encompassing most territories north of the city of Columbus. The court has courthouses in Cleveland, Toledo, Akron and Youngstown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan</span> United States federal district court in Michigan

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan is the federal district court with jurisdiction over of the eastern half of the Lower Peninsula of the State of Michigan. The Court is based in Detroit, with courthouses also located in Ann Arbor, Bay City, Flint, and Port Huron. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has appellate jurisdiction over the court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan</span> United States federal district court in Michigan

The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan is the federal district court with jurisdiction over the western portion of the state of Michigan, including the entire Upper Peninsula and the Lower Peninsula from Lansing westward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida</span> United States federal district court in Florida

The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Western District of Texas</span> United States federal district court in Texas

The United States District Court for the Western District of Texas is a federal district court. The court convenes in San Antonio with divisions in Austin, Del Rio, El Paso, Midland, Pecos, and Waco. It has jurisdiction in over 50 Trans-Pecos, Permian Basin, and Hill Country counties of the U.S. state of Texas. This district covers over 92,000 square miles (240,000 km2) and seven divisions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia</span> United States federal district court in West Virginia

The United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia is a federal court in the Fourth Circuit.

Elliott E. "Spike" Maynard was an American lawyer and former judge from West Virginia. In 1996 he was elected as a Democrat to the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. A judge of West Virginia's 30th Judicial Circuit for over 16 years, he was elected as a Democrat to a 12-year term on the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Bruce King</span> American judge (born 1940)

Robert Bruce King is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

David Alan Faber is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John A. Field Jr.</span> American judge

John A. Field Jr. was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irene Berger</span> American judge (born 1954)

Irene Cornelia Berger is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanie Thacker</span> American judge (born 1965)

Stephanie Dawn Thacker is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leon P. Miller</span> American lawyer, politician, and judge

Leon Parker Miller was an American lawyer, politician, and judge, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Miller served as U.S. Attorney for the District of the Virgin Islands from 1954 to 1962. He was appointed the first African-American judge in West Virginia in April 1968, and became the state's first elected African-American judge in November 1968.

References

  1. https://www.fjc.gov/history/courts/u.s.-district-courts-districts-west-virginia-legislative-history U.S. District Courts of West Virginia, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center
  2. "William S. Thompson Sworn In as United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia". www.justice.gov. 2021-10-13. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
  3. 28 U.S.C.   § 129

38°21′9.1″N81°38′20.1″W / 38.352528°N 81.638917°W / 38.352528; -81.638917