Hiram Emory Widener, Jr.

Hiram Emory Widener Jr. (April 20, 1923 – September 19, 2007) was a United States federal judge and then a Senior Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Early life and career

Born in Abingdon, Virginia, Widener received a B.S. from U.S. Naval Academy from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1944 and then served in the Navy until 1949. In 1953 he received an LL.B. from Washington and Lee University. He was a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1951 to 1952, and was in private practice in Bristol, Virginia from 1953 to 1969. He was a Commissioner for the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia from 1963 to 1966, and was a member of the Virginia Election Laws Study Commission from 1968 to 1969.

Federal judicial service

On June 19, 1969, Widener was nominated by President Richard Nixon to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia vacated by Thomas Johnson Michie. Widener was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 11, 1969, and received his commission on July 14, 1969. He served as chief judge from 1971 to 1972, but on September 25, 1972, Nixon nominated Widener to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated by Albert Vickers Bryan. The Senate confirmed Widener's elevation on October 12, 1972, and he received his commission on October 17, 1972. He officially ceased his district court service on October 27, 1972, and was succeeded by James C. Turk.

Widener announced his intent to take senior status upon confirmation of his successor in 2001. William Haynes had been nominated to succeed Widener but was never given a vote in the U.S. Senate. In January 2007, Haynes withdrew his candidacy for nomination to replace Widener on the Fourth Circuit. He had long been opposed by Democrats and a few Republicans, and with the Democrats having regained control of the Senate, his chances for confirmation appeared to have completely vanished. On July 17, 2007, Widener took senior status unconditionally.

Until his taking senior status, Widener was the longest-serving appellate judge still in active service. The longest serving appellate judge is now Judge Gerald Tjoflat of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, who has been in active service as an appellate judge since November 1975. Judge Widener holds the record as the longest serving judge in the history of the Fourth Circuit. (Judge John D. Butzner, Jr. technically served longer, but he spent the last 24 years (out of 39 years total) in senior status, and the last 5 years of those 24 as an inactive judge).

Widener died at his home outside Abingdon on September 19, 2007 after a year-long battle with lung cancer.

Sources

• Hiram Emory Widener, Jr. at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
• Washington Post obituary