United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan

United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan
(W.D. Mich.)
Location Grand Rapids, Michigan
Appeals to Sixth Circuit
Established February 24, 1863
Judges assigned 4
Chief judge Paul Lewis Maloney
Official site

The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan (in case citations, W.D. Mich.) is the Federal district court with jurisdiction over of the western portion of the state of Michigan, including the entire Upper Peninsula.

Appeals from the Western District of Michigan are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

Contents

History

The United States District Court for the District of Michigan was established on July 1, 1836, by 5 Stat. 61, with a single judgeship.[1] The district court was not assigned to a judicial circuit, but was granted the same jurisdiction as United States circuit courts, except in appeals and writs of error, which were the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Due to the so-called "Toledo War", a boundary dispute with Ohio, Michigan did not become a state of the Union until January 26, 1837. On March 3, 1837, Congress passed an act that repealed the circuit court jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court for the District of Michigan, assigned the District of Michigan to the Seventh Circuit, and established a U.S. circuit court for the district, 5 Stat. 176.[1]

On July 15, 1862, Congress reorganized the circuits and assigned Michigan to the Eighth Circuit by 12 Stat. 576,[1] and on January 28, 1863, the Congress again reorganized Seventh and Eight Circuits and assigned Michigan to the Seventh Circuit, by 12 Stat. 637.[1] On February 24, 1863, Congress divided the District of Michigan into the Eastern and the Western Districts, with one judgeship authorized for each district, by 12 Stat. 660.[1] The Western District was later further divided into a Southern Division and a Northern Division.

Jurisdiction

The District Court is based in Grand Rapids, courthouses also located in Kalamazoo, Lansing, and Marquette in the Upper Peninsula. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has appellate jurisdiction over the court.

Current judges

# Title Judge Duty station Born Term of service Appointed by
Active Chief Senior
19 Chief Judge Paul Lewis Maloney Kalamazoo 1949 2007–present 2008–present — G.W. Bush
16 District Judge Robert Holmes Bell Grand Rapids 1944 1987–present 2001–2008 — Reagan
20 District Judge Robert James Jonker Grand Rapids 1960 2007–present — — G.W. Bush
21 District Judge Janet T. Neff Grand Rapids 1945 2007–present — — G.W. Bush
12 Senior District Judge Wendell Alverson Miles 1916 1974–1986 1979–1986 1986–present Nixon
15 Senior District Judge Richard Alan Enslen 1931 1979–2005 1995–2001 2005–present Carter
18 Senior District Judge Gordon Jay Quist Grand Rapids 1937 1992–2006 (none) 2006–present G.H.W. Bush

Former judges

Judge Appointed by Began active
service		 Ended active
service		 Ended senior
status		 End reason
Arthur Carter Denison William Howard Taft 01910-01-31 January 31, 1910 01911-10-03 October 3, 1911 – reappointment
Albert J. Engel, Jr. Richard Nixon 01970-12-18 December 18, 1970 01974-01-04 January 4, 1974 – reappointment
Noel Peter Fox John F. Kennedy 01962-07-31 July 31, 1962 01979-12-31 December 31, 1979 01987-06-03 June 3, 1987 death
Benjamin F. Gibson Jimmy Carter 01979-09-26 September 26, 1979 01996-07-13 July 13, 1996 01999-01-31 January 31, 1999 retirement
Douglas Woodruff Hillman Jimmy Carter 01979-09-26 September 26, 1979 01991-02-15 February 15, 1991 02002-10-01 October 1, 2002 retirement
W. Wallace Kent Dwight D. Eisenhower 01954-06-10 June 10, 1954 01971-01-06 January 6, 1971 – reappointment
Loyal Edwin Knappen Theodore Roosevelt 01906-12-10 December 10, 1906 01910-02-08 February 8, 1910 – reappointment
David McKeague George H. W. Bush 01992-02-10 February 10, 1992 02005-06-13 June 13, 2005 – reappointment
Fred Morton Raymond Calvin Coolidge 01925-05-08 May 8, 1925[2] 01946-02-06 February 6, 1946 – death
Clarence W. Sessions William Howard Taft 01911-03-02 March 2, 1911 01931-04-01 April 1, 1931 – death
Henry Franklin Severens Grover Cleveland 01886-05-25 May 25, 1886 01900-03-16 March 16, 1900 – reappointment
Raymond Wesley Starr Harry S. Truman 01946-07-25 July 25, 1946 01961-08-15 August 15, 1961 01968-11-02 November 2, 1968 death
George P. Wanty William McKinley 01900-03-13 March 13, 1900 01906-07-09 July 9, 1906 – death
Solomon Lewis Withey Abraham Lincoln 01863-03-11 March 11, 1863 01886-04-25 April 25, 1886 – death

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e U.S. District Courts of Michigan, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center.
  2. ^ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 8, 1925, confirmed by the United States Senate on December 18, 1925, and received commission on December 18, 1925.

External links