United States District Court for the Southern District of New York

The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case citations, S.D.N.Y.) is a federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of the State of New York. Two of these are in New York City: New York (Manhattan) and Bronx; six are in the Hudson Valley: Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
(S.D.N.Y.)
Location	Daniel Patrick Moynihan U.S. Courthouse (Manhattan) More locations Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse (Manhattan) Charles L. Brieant Jr. Federal Building and Courthouse (White Plains) Middletown
Appeals to	Second Circuit
Established	April 9, 1814
Judges	28
Chief Judge	Laura Taylor Swain
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney	Matthew Podolsky (acting)
U.S. Marshal	Ralph Sozio
www.nysd.uscourts.gov

Because it covers Manhattan, the Southern District of New York has long been one of the most active and influential federal trial courts in the United States. It often has jurisdiction over America's largest financial institutions and prosecution of white-collar crime and other federal crimes. Because of its age, being the oldest federal court in the history of the United States, great influence, described as "the preeminent trial court in the nation", and its strong independence, it is colloquially called the "Mother Court", or the "Sovereign District of New York."

The district itself has had several prominent judges on its bench, including Learned Hand, Michael Mukasey, and Sonia Sotomayor, and many of the U.S. attorneys for the district have been prominent American legal and political figures, such as Elihu Root, Henry L. Stimson, Robert Morgenthau, Rudy Giuliani, James Comey, Michael J. Garcia, and Preet Bharara.

Jurisdiction

The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York encompasses the counties of New York, Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan and draws jurors from those counties. The Court also shares concurrent jurisdiction over the waters of the counties of Kings, Nassau, Queens, Richmond, and Suffolk with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The Court hears cases in Manhattan, White Plains, and Poughkeepsie, New York.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the Court. As of February 13, 2025^[update], the United States Attorney is Matthew Podolsky.

The court sits in the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse and Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse, both in Manhattan, and in the Charles L. Brieant Jr. Federal Building and Courthouse in White Plains.

History

The United States District Court for the District of New York was one of the original 13 courts established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, 1 Stat. 73, on September 24, 1789. It first sat at the old Merchants Exchange on Broad Street in November 1789, the first federal court to do so. The Act of April 9, 1814, 3 Stat. 120, divided the District of New York into Northern and Southern Districts.

The subdivision of the district was reportedly instigated by Matthias B. Tallmadge, out of antipathy for fellow district judge William P. Van Ness. These Districts were later further subdivided with the creation of the Eastern District on February 25, 1865 by 13 Stat. 438, and the Western District on May 12, 1900, by 31 Stat. 175. Public Law 95-408 (enacted October 2, 1978) transferred Columbia, Greene, and Ulster counties from the Southern to the Northern district.

For the first hundred years of its existence, the case load of the district was dominated first by admiralty cases, and then by a mix of admiralty and bankruptcy cases. The primary responsibility for hearing bankruptcy cases has since been transferred to the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, with the District Court only reviewing cases already decided by a bankruptcy judge.

Since its creation, the Southern District of New York has had over 150 judges, more than any other District. Twenty-one judges from the Southern District of New York have been elevated to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit—Samuel Blatchford, Charles Merrill Hough, Learned Hand, Julius Marshuetz Mayer, Augustus Noble Hand, Martin Thomas Manton, Robert P. Patterson, Harold Medina, Irving Kaufman, Wilfred Feinberg, Walter R. Mansfield, Murray Gurfein, Lawrence W. Pierce, Pierre N. Leval, John M. Walker Jr., Sonia Sotomayor, Denny Chin, Barrington Daniels Parker Jr., Gerard E. Lynch, Richard J. Sullivan, and Alison Nathan. Blatchford and Sotomayor, after being elevated from the Southern District of New York to serve as Circuit Judges for the Second Circuit, were later elevated to the Supreme Court of the United States. The longest serving judge, David Norton Edelstein, served as an active judge for 43 years to the day, and in senior status for an additional six years.

Judges of the court have gone on to other high governmental positions. Robert P. Patterson served as Under Secretary of War under President Franklin Roosevelt and was Secretary of War under President Harry S. Truman. Louis Freeh served as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation from September 1993 to June 2001. Michael Mukasey served as the 81st United States Attorney General under President George W. Bush.

Notable cases

• The injury and loss of life claims from the 1912 sinking of the Titanic, the 1915 torpedo attack on the Lusitania and the 1904 fire aboard the General Slocum were heard in the S.D.N.Y.
• The 1951 espionage trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and the 1949 perjury trial of Alger Hiss were heard in the S.D.N.Y.
• Judge John M. Woolsey of the S.D.N.Y. rejected government efforts to censor on obscenity grounds the distribution of James Joyce's Ulysses in 1933.
• Judge Murray Gurfein of the Court rejected government efforts to enjoin The New York Times from publishing the Pentagon Papers in 1971.
• Defamation suits were heard in the S.D.N.Y. against CBS and Time magazine by General William Westmoreland and Israeli General Ariel Sharon.
• Two former Attorneys General of the United States were indicted and tried in the S.D.N.Y. for crimes while in office – Harry Daugherty of the Teapot Dome era and John Mitchell of the Watergate era. Juries were unable to reach verdicts in the two trials against Daugherty in 1926; John Mitchell was acquitted in 1974.
• Financial frauds have been prosecuted in the S.D.N.Y., among them the cases against Bernard Madoff, Ivan Boesky, Michael Milken, and Sam Bankman-Fried.
• The 1990 trial of Imelda Marcos, who was the former First Lady of the Philippines, and who was indicted on charges of fraud, racketeering, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.
• Bombings: the trials of those accused of the 1998 United States embassy bombings in East Africa; those alleged to have been responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing; Omar Abdel Rahman (known in the press as "The Blind Sheikh"); and those who conspired to carry out the Bojinka plot occurred in the District. More recently, the prosecution arising out of the 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt were each heard in the S.D.N.Y.
• Bridgeman v. Corel (1999) established that exact reproductions of public domain paintings were not subject to copyright protection.
• Viacom Inc. v. YouTube Inc., a $1 billion lawsuit against Google and YouTube in 2012 on the grounds of alleged copyright infringement. The DMCA safe harbor law became the main argument in the case.
• Prosecution of Abduwali Muse, the so-called "Somali Pirate", was heard in the Court in 2010.
• The criminal cases against Bess Myerson, Leona Helmsley and Martha Stewart were heard in the S.D.N.Y. as well.
• The Deflategate controversy concerning the National Football League's Tom Brady was heard in the S.D.N.Y. in 2015.
• In 2017, Hosseinzadeh v. Klein, concerning the practice of fair use in online video content, was heard in the S.D.N.Y.
• On December 12, 2018, Judge William H. Pauley III sentenced Michael Cohen – who had served as personal legal counsel to U.S. president Donald Trump for more than a decade – to "three years in prison and millions in forfeitures, restitution and fines", after pleading guilty to charges including campaign finance violations, tax evasion and committing perjury while under oath before Congress.
• Patrick Ho, former Hong Kong Secretary for Home Affairs, bribery And money laundering offenses to Sam Kutesa, former Minister of Foreign Affairs in Uganda and Idriss Déby, former Chad President on behalf of CEFC China Energy.
• In 2020, for the Ben Feibleman v. Columbia University case, a settlement was reached and a student's diploma restored.
• In July 2022, Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jennifer Shah pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in the S.D.N.Y. In January 2023, Shah was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.
• Criminal cases against rapper and record producer Sean Combs, and Ghislaine Maxwell, a sex trafficker and confidant of Jeffrey Epstein.
• The E. Jean Carroll v. Donald J. Trump trial, presided over by Senior Judge Lewis Kaplan, was held in April and May of 2023 in which the jury reached a unanimous decision, after deliberating for less than three hours, that Donald J. Trump was liable for sexual abuse via forcible digital penetration and defamation. Carroll was awarded a total of $5 million in damages.

Current judges

As of January 7, 2025^[update]:

#	Title	Judge	Duty station	Born	Term of service			Appointed by
					Active	Chief	Senior
125	Chief Judge	Laura Taylor Swain	Manhattan	1958	2000–present	2021–present	—	Clinton
110	District Judge	John G. Koeltl	Manhattan	1945	1994–present	—	—	Clinton
129	District Judge	Kenneth M. Karas	White Plains	1964	2004–present	—	—	G.W. Bush
132	District Judge	Cathy Seibel	White Plains	1960	2008–present	—	—	G.W. Bush
135	District Judge	J. Paul Oetken	Manhattan	1965	2011–present	—	—	Obama
136	District Judge	Paul A. Engelmayer	Manhattan	1961	2011–present	—	—	Obama
139	District Judge	Edgardo Ramos	Manhattan	1960	2011–present	—	—	Obama
140	District Judge	Andrew L. Carter Jr.	Manhattan	1969	2011–present	—	—	Obama
141	District Judge	Jesse M. Furman	Manhattan	1972	2012–present	—	—	Obama
142	District Judge	Ronnie Abrams	Manhattan	1968	2012–present	—	—	Obama
144	District Judge	Katherine Polk Failla	Manhattan	1969	2013–present	—	—	Obama
145	District Judge	Analisa Torres	Manhattan	1959	2013–present	—	—	Obama
146	District Judge	Nelson S. Román	White Plains	1960	2013–present	—	—	Obama
147	District Judge	Vernon S. Broderick	Manhattan	1963	2013–present	—	—	Obama
148	District Judge	Gregory H. Woods	Manhattan	1969	2013–present	—	—	Obama
150	District Judge	Mary Kay Vyskocil	Manhattan	1958	2019–present	—	—	Trump
151	District Judge	Lewis J. Liman	Manhattan	1960	2019–present	—	—	Trump
152	District Judge	Philip M. Halpern	White Plains	1956	2020–present	—	—	Trump
153	District Judge	John P. Cronan	Manhattan	1976	2020–present	—	—	Trump
154	District Judge	Jennifer L. Rochon	Manhattan	1970	2022–present	—	—	Biden
155	District Judge	Jennifer H. Rearden	Manhattan	1970	2022–present	—	—	Biden
156	District Judge	Arun Subramanian	Manhattan	1979	2023–present	—	—	Biden
157	District Judge	Jessica G. L. Clarke	Manhattan	1983	2023–present	—	—	Biden
158	District Judge	Dale Ho	Manhattan	1977	2023–present	—	—	Biden
159	District Judge	Margaret Garnett	Manhattan	1971	2024–present	—	—	Biden
160	District Judge	Jeannette Vargas	Manhattan	1973	2024–present	—	—	Biden
161	District Judge	vacant	—	—	—	—	—	—
162	District Judge	vacant	—	—	—	—	—	—
79	Senior Judge	Charles S. Haight Jr.	New Haven, CT	1930	1976–1995	—	1995–present	Ford
91	Senior Judge	Louis L. Stanton	Manhattan	1927	1985–1996	—	1996–present	Reagan
97	Senior Judge	Kimba Wood	Manhattan	1944	1988–2009	2006–2009	2009–present	Reagan
102	Senior Judge	Loretta Preska	Manhattan	1949	1992–2017	2009–2016	2017–present	G.H.W. Bush
108	Senior Judge	Denise Cote	Manhattan	1946	1994–2011	—	2011–present	Clinton
109	Senior Judge	Lewis A. Kaplan	Manhattan	1944	1994–2011	—	2011–present	Clinton
113	Senior Judge	Sidney H. Stein	Manhattan	1945	1995–2010	—	2010–present	Clinton
115	Senior Judge	Jed S. Rakoff	Manhattan	1943	1996–2010	—	2010–present	Clinton
117	Senior Judge	Richard M. Berman	Manhattan	1943	1998–2011	—	2011–present	Clinton
118	Senior Judge	Alvin Hellerstein	Manhattan	1933	1998–2011	—	2011–present	Clinton
119	Senior Judge	Colleen McMahon	Manhattan	1951	1998–2021	2016–2021	2021–present	Clinton
121	Senior Judge	Naomi Reice Buchwald	Manhattan	1944	1999–2012	—	2012–present	Clinton
122	Senior Judge	Victor Marrero	Manhattan	1941	1999–2010	—	2010–present	Clinton
123	Senior Judge	George B. Daniels	Manhattan	1953	2000–2021	—	2021–present	Clinton
126	Senior Judge	P. Kevin Castel	Manhattan	1950	2003–2017	—	2017–present	G.W. Bush
130	Senior Judge	Paul A. Crotty	Manhattan	1941	2005–2015	—	2015–present	G.W. Bush
133	Senior Judge	Paul G. Gardephe	Manhattan	1957	2008–2023	—	2023–present	G.W. Bush
134	Senior Judge	Vincent L. Briccetti	White Plains	1954	2011–2023	—	2023–present	Obama
143	Senior Judge	Lorna G. Schofield	Manhattan	1956	2012–2025	—	2025–present	Obama
149	Senior Judge	Valerie E. Caproni	Manhattan	1955	2013–2025	—	2025–present	Obama

1. Judge Haight has sat with the District of Connecticut since taking senior status.

Vacancies and pending nominations

Seat	Prior judge's duty station	Seat last held by	Vacancy reason	Date of vacancy	Nominee	Date of nomination
27	Manhattan	Lorna G. Schofield	Senior status	January 1, 2025	—	—
10		Valerie E. Caproni		January 7, 2025	—	—

Former judges

#	Judge	State	Born–died	Active service	Chief Judge	Senior status	Appointed by	Reason for termination
1	William P. Van Ness	NY	1778–1826	1814–1826	—	—	Madison/Operation of law	death
2	Samuel Rossiter Betts	NY	1786–1868	1826–1867	—	—	J.Q. Adams	resignation
3	Samuel Blatchford	NY	1820–1893	1867–1878	—	—	A. Johnson	elevation to 2d Cir.
4	William Gardner Choate	NY	1830–1920	1878–1881	—	—	Hayes	resignation
5	Addison Brown	NY	1830–1913	1881–1901	—	—	Garfield	retirement
6	George Bethune Adams	NY	1845–1911	1901–1911	—	—	McKinley	death
7	George Chandler Holt	NY	1843–1931	1903–1914	—	—	T. Roosevelt	retirement
8	Charles Merrill Hough	NY	1858–1927	1906–1916	—	—	T. Roosevelt	elevation to 2d Cir.
9	Learned Hand	NY	1872–1961	1909–1924	—	—	Taft	elevation to 2d Cir.
10	Julius Marshuetz Mayer	NY	1865–1925	1912–1921	—	—	Taft	elevation to 2d Cir.
11	Augustus Noble Hand	NY	1869–1954	1914–1927	—	—	Wilson	elevation to 2d Cir.
12	Martin Thomas Manton	NY	1880–1946	1916–1918	—	—	Wilson	elevation to 2d Cir.
13	John C. Knox	NY	1881–1966	1918–1955	1948–1955	1955–1966	Wilson	death
14	Henry W. Goddard	NY	1876–1955	1923–1954	—	1954–1955	Harding	death
15	Francis A. Winslow	NY	1866–1932	1923–1929	—	—	Harding	resignation
16	William Bondy	NY	1870–1964	1923–1956	1955–1956	1956–1964	Harding	death
17	Thomas D. Thacher	NY	1881–1950	1925–1930	—	—	Coolidge	resignation
18	Frank Joseph Coleman	NY	1886–1934	1927–1934	—	—	Coolidge	death
19	John M. Woolsey	NY	1877–1945	1929–1943	—	1943–1945	Hoover	death
20	Francis Gordon Caffey	NY	1868–1951	1929–1947	—	1947–1951	Hoover	death
21	Alfred Conkling Coxe Jr.	NY	1880–1957	1929–1951	—	1951–1957	Hoover	death
22	Robert P. Patterson	NY	1891–1952	1930–1939	—	—	Hoover	elevation to 2d Cir.
23	George Murray Hulbert	NY	1881–1950	1934–1950	—	—	F. Roosevelt	death
24	Vincent L. Leibell	NY	1883–1968	1936–1954	—	1954–1968	F. Roosevelt	death
25	John William Clancy	NY	1888–1969	1936–1959	1956–1959	1959–1969	F. Roosevelt	death
26	Samuel Mandelbaum	NY	1884–1946	1936–1946	—	—	F. Roosevelt	death
27	Edward Augustus Conger	NY	1882–1963	1938–1954	—	1954–1963	F. Roosevelt	death
28	John Bright	NY	1884–1948	1941–1948	—	—	F. Roosevelt	death
29	Simon H. Rifkind	NY	1901–1995	1941–1950	—	—	F. Roosevelt	resignation
30	Harold Medina	NY	1888–1990	1947–1951	—	—	Truman	elevation to 2d Cir.
31	Sylvester J. Ryan	NY	1896–1981	1947–1973	1959–1966	1973–1981	Truman	death
32	Samuel H. Kaufman	NY	1893–1960	1948–1955	—	1955–1960	Truman	death
33	Irving Kaufman	NY	1910–1992	1949–1961	—	—	Truman	elevation to 2d Cir.
34	John F. X. McGohey	NY	1894–1972	1949–1970	—	1970–1972	Truman	death
35	Gregory Francis Noonan	NY	1906–1964	1949–1964	—	—	Truman	death
36	Sidney Sugarman	NY	1904–1974	1949–1971	1966–1971	1971–1974	Truman	death
37	Edward Weinfeld	NY	1901–1988	1950–1988	—	—	Truman	death
38	Thomas Francis Murphy	NY	1905–1995	1951–1970	—	1970–1995	Truman	death
39	Edward Jordan Dimock	NY	1890–1986	1951–1961	—	1961–1986	Truman	death
40	David Norton Edelstein	NY	1910–2000	1951–1994	1971–1980	1994–2000	Truman	death
41	Archie Owen Dawson	NY	1898–1964	1954–1964	—	—	Eisenhower	death
42	Lawrence Walsh	NY	1912–2014	1954–1957	—	—	Eisenhower	resignation
43	Alexander Bicks	NY	1901–1963	1954–1963	—	—	Eisenhower	death
44	Edmund Louis Palmieri	NY	1907–1989	1954–1972	—	1972–1989	Eisenhower	death
45	William Bernard Herlands	NY	1905–1969	1955–1969	—	—	Eisenhower	death
46	John M. Cashin	NY	1892–1970	1955–1965	—	1965–1970	Eisenhower	death
47	Richard Harrington Levet	NY	1894–1980	1956–1966	—	1966–1976	Eisenhower	retirement
48	Frederick van Pelt Bryan	NY	1904–1978	1956–1972	—	1972–1978	Eisenhower	death
49	Lloyd Francis MacMahon	NY	1912–1989	1959–1982	1980–1982	1982–1989	Eisenhower	death
50	Charles Miller Metzner	NY	1912–2009	1959–1977	—	1977–2009	Eisenhower	death
51	Thomas Francis Croake	NY	1902–1978	1961–1972	—	1972–1978	Kennedy	death
52	Dudley Baldwin Bonsal	NY	1906–1995	1961–1976	—	1976–1995	Kennedy	death
53	Irving Ben Cooper	NY	1902–1996	1961–1972	—	1972–1996	Kennedy	death
54	Wilfred Feinberg	NY	1920–2014	1961–1966	—	—	Kennedy	elevation to 2d Cir.
55	Harold R. Tyler Jr.	NY	1922–2005	1962–1975	—	—	Kennedy	resignation
56	Edward Cochrane McLean	NY	1903–1972	1962–1972	—	—	Kennedy	death
57	Inzer Bass Wyatt	NY	1907–1990	1962–1977	—	1977–1990	Kennedy	death
58	John Matthew Cannella	NY	1908–1996	1963–1977	—	1977–1996	Kennedy	death
59	Charles Henry Tenney	NY	1911–1994	1963–1979	—	1979–1994	L. Johnson	death
60	Marvin E. Frankel	NY	1920–2002	1965–1978	—	—	L. Johnson	resignation
61	Walter R. Mansfield	NY	1911–1987	1966–1971	—	—	L. Johnson	elevation to 2d Cir.
62	Constance Baker Motley	NY	1921–2005	1966–1986	1982–1986	1986–2005	L. Johnson	death
63	Milton Pollack	NY	1906–2004	1967–1983	—	1983–2004	L. Johnson	death
64	Morris E. Lasker	NY	1917–2009	1968–1983	—	1983–2009	L. Johnson	death
65	Murray Gurfein	NY	1907–1979	1971–1974	—	—	Nixon	elevation to 2d Cir.
66	Lawrence W. Pierce	NY	1924–2020	1971–1981	—	—	Nixon	elevation to 2d Cir.
67	Charles L. Brieant	NY	1923–2008	1971–2007	1986–1993	2007–2008	Nixon	death
68	Arnold Bauman	NY	1914–1989	1971–1974	—	—	Nixon	resignation
69	Lee Parsons Gagliardi	NY	1918–1998	1971–1985	—	1985–1998	Nixon	death
70	Thomas P. Griesa	NY	1930–2017	1972–2000	1993–2000	2000–2017	Nixon	death
71	Whitman Knapp	NY	1909–2004	1972–1987	—	1987–2004	Nixon	death
72	Charles E. Stewart Jr.	NY	1916–1994	1972–1985	—	1985–1994	Nixon	death
73	Robert L. Carter	NY	1917–2012	1972–1986	—	1986–2012	Nixon	death
74	Kevin Duffy	NY	1933–2020	1972–1998	—	1998–2016	Nixon	retirement
75	Robert Joseph Ward	NY	1926–2003	1972–1991	—	1991–2003	Nixon	death
76	William C. Conner	NY	1920–2009	1973–1987	—	1987–2009	Nixon	death
77	Richard Owen	NY	1922–2015	1973–1989	—	1989–2015	Nixon	death
78	Henry Frederick Werker	NY	1920–1984	1974–1984	—	—	Nixon	death
80	Gerard Louis Goettel	NY	1928–2011	1976–1993	—	1993–2011	Ford	death
81	Vincent Lyons Broderick	NY	1920–1995	1976–1988	—	1988–1995	Ford	death
82	Pierre N. Leval	NY	1936–present	1977–1993	—	—	Carter	elevation to 2d Cir.
83	Robert W. Sweet	NY	1922–2019	1978–1991	—	1991–2019	Carter	death
84	Leonard B. Sand	NY	1928–2016	1978–1993	—	1993–2016	Carter	death
85	Mary Johnson Lowe	NY	1924–1999	1978–1991	—	1991–1999	Carter	death
86	Abraham David Sofaer	NY	1938–present	1979–1985	—	—	Carter	resignation
87	John E. Sprizzo	NY	1934–2008	1981–2000	—	2000–2008	Reagan	death
88	Shirley Wohl Kram	NY	1922–2009	1983–1993	—	1993–2009	Reagan	death
89	John F. Keenan	NY	1929–2024	1983–1996	—	1996–2024	Reagan	death
90	Peter K. Leisure	NY	1929–2013	1984–1997	—	1997–2013	Reagan	death
92	John M. Walker Jr.	NY	1940–present	1985–1989	—	—	Reagan	elevation to 2d Cir.
93	Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum	NY	1929–2016	1986–1998	—	1998–2016	Reagan	death
94	Richard J. Daronco	NY	1931–1988	1987–1988	—	—	Reagan	death
95	Michael Mukasey	NY	1941–present	1987–2006	2000–2006	2006	Reagan	retirement
96	Kenneth Conboy	NY	1938–present	1987–1993	—	—	Reagan	resignation
98	Robert P. Patterson Jr.	NY	1923–2015	1988–1998	—	1998–2015	Reagan	death
99	John S. Martin Jr.	NY	1935–present	1990–2003	—	2003	G.H.W. Bush	retirement
100	Lawrence M. McKenna	NY	1933–2023	1990–2002	—	2002–2023	G.H.W. Bush	death
101	Louis Freeh	NY	1950–present	1991–1993	—	—	G.H.W. Bush	resignation
103	Sonia Sotomayor	NY	1954–present	1992–1998	—	—	G.H.W. Bush	elevation to 2d Cir.
104	Allen G. Schwartz	NY	1934–2003	1993–2003	—	—	Clinton	death
105	Deborah Batts	NY	1947–2020	1994–2012	—	2012–2020	Clinton	death
106	Harold Baer Jr.	NY	1933–2014	1994–2004	—	2004–2014	Clinton	death
107	Denny Chin	NY	1954–present	1994–2010	—	—	Clinton	elevation to 2d Cir.
111	Barrington D. Parker Jr.	NY	1944–present	1994–2001	—	—	Clinton	elevation to 2d Cir.
112	Shira Scheindlin	NY	1946–present	1994–2011	—	2011–2016	Clinton	retirement
114	Barbara S. Jones	NY	1947–present	1995–2012	—	2012–2013	Clinton	retirement
116	Richard C. Casey	NY	1933–2007	1997–2007	—	—	Clinton	death
120	William H. Pauley III	NY	1952–2021	1998–2018	—	2018–2021	Clinton	death
124	Gerard E. Lynch	NY	1951–present	2000–2009	—	—	Clinton	elevation to 2d Cir.
127	Richard J. Holwell	NY	1946–present	2003–2012	—	—	G.W. Bush	resignation
128	Stephen C. Robinson	NY	1957–present	2003–2010	—	—	G.W. Bush	resignation
131	Richard J. Sullivan	NY	1964–present	2007–2018	—	—	G.W. Bush	elevation to 2d Cir.
137	Katherine B. Forrest	NY	1964–present	2011–2018	—	—	Obama	resignation
138	Alison Nathan	NY	1972–present	2011–2022	—	—	Obama	elevation to 2d Cir.

1. Initially appointed to the District of New York, reassigned by operation of law to the Southern District of New York on April 9, 1814.
2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on July 13, 1867, confirmed by the United States Senate on July 16, 1867, and received commission the same day.
3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on October 12, 1881, confirmed by the Senate on October 14, 1881, and received commission the same day.
4. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 5, 1901, confirmed by the Senate on December 17, 1901, and received commission the same day.
5. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 6, 1927, confirmed by the Senate on December 19, 1927, and received commission the same day.
6. Recess appointment; formally nominated on November 24, 1947, confirmed by the Senate on December 18, 1947, and received commission on December 20, 1947.
7. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 13, 1949, confirmed by the Senate on January 31, 1949, and received commission on February 2, 1949.
8. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on April 4, 1950, and received commission on April 7, 1950.
9. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on March 8, 1950, and received commission on March 9, 1950.
10. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on April 25, 1950, and received commission on April 26, 1950.
11. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on April 28, 1950, and received commission on May 1, 1950.
12. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 30, 1952, confirmed by the Senate on April 7, 1952, and received commission on April 8, 1952.
13. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 12, 1956, confirmed by the Senate on June 26, 1956, and received commission on June 27, 1956.
14. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 12, 1956, confirmed by the Senate on March 1, 1956, and received commission on March 2, 1956.
15. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1962, confirmed by the Senate on March 16, 1962, and received commission on March 17, 1962.
16. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1962, confirmed by the Senate on September 20, 1962, and received commission on September 28, 1962.
17. Judge Tenney was nominated by President Kennedy but was appointed to the Court by (i.e., received his commission from) President Johnson.

Chief judges

Chief Judge
Knox	1948–1955
Bondy	1955–1956
Clancy	1956–1959
Ryan	1959–1966
Sugarman	1966–1971
Edelstein	1971–1980
MacMahon	1980–1982
Motley	1982–1986
Brieant	1986–1993
Griesa	1993–2000
Mukasey	2000–2006
Wood	2006–2009
Preska	2009–2016
McMahon	2016–2021
Swain	2021–present

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 New York on April 9, 1814 Van Ness 1814–1826 Betts 1826–1867 Blatchford 1867–1878 Choate 1878–1881 Brown 1881–1901 Adams 1901–1911 Mayer 1912–1921 Bondy 1923–1956 Bryan 1956–1972 Ward 1972–1991 Preska 1992–2017 Vyskocil 2019–present

Seat 2 Seat established on February 9, 1903 by 32 Stat. 805 Holt 1903–1914 A. Hand 1914–1927 Coleman 1927–1934 Hulbert 1934–1950 Dimock 1951–1961 McLean 1962–1972 Owen 1973–1989 Batts 1994–2012 Broderick 2013–present

Seat 3 Seat established on May 26, 1906 by 34 Stat. 202 Hough 1906–1916 Manton 1916–1918 Knox 1918–1955 Levet 1956–1966 Lasker 1968–1983 Walker, Jr. 1985–1989 Sotomayor 1992–1998 Marrero 1999–2010 A. Carter, Jr. 2011–present

Seat 4 Seat established on March 2, 1909 by 35 Stat. 685 L. Hand 1909–1924 Thacher 1925–1930 R. Patterson, Sr. 1930–1939 Rifkind 1941–1950 Weinfeld 1950–1988 Martin, Jr. 1990–2003 Robinson 2003–2010 Ramos 2011–present

Seat 5 Seat established on September 14, 1922 by 42 Stat. 837 (temporary) Seat made permanent on August 19, 1935 by 49 Stat. 659 Goddard 1923–1954 Dawson 1954–1964 Motley 1966–1986 Wood 1988–2009 Briccetti 2011–2023 Garnett 2024–present

Seat 6 Seat established on September 14, 1922 by 42 Stat. 837 (temporary) Winslow 1923–1929 Seat made permanent on August 19, 1935 by 49 Stat. 659 Leibell 1936–1954 Bicks 1954–1963 Tenney 1963–1979 Sprizzo 1981–2000 Lynch 2000–2009 Engelmayer 2011–present

Seat 7 Seat established on February 26, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1317 Woolsey 1929–1943 Seat abolished on December 31, 1943 (temporary judgeship expired)

Seat 8 Seat established on February 26, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1317 Caffey 1929–1947 Ryan 1947–1973 Werker 1974–1984 Stanton 1985–1996 Hellerstein 1998–2011 Furman 2012–present

Seat 9 Seat established on February 26, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1317 Coxe, Jr. 1929–1951 Edelstein 1952–1994 Rakoff 1996–2010 Forrest 2011–2018 Ho 2023–present

Seat 10 Seat established on June 15, 1936 by 49 Stat. 1491 Clancy 1936–1959 Metzner 1959–1977 Sand 1978–1993 Parker Jr. 1994–2001 Holwell 2003–2012 Caproni 2013–2025 vacant 2025–present

Seat 11 Seat established on June 15, 1936 by 49 Stat. 1491 Mandelbaum 1936–1946 Medina 1947–1951 Murphy 1951–1970 Gurfein 1971–1974 Haight, Jr. 1976–1995 Casey 1997–2007 Seibel 2008–present

Seat 12 Seat established on May 31, 1938 by 52 Stat. 585 (temporary) Seat made permanent on June 8, 1940 by 54 Stat. 253 Conger 1938–1954 Herlands 1955–1969 Pierce 1971–1981 Kram 1983–1993 Koeltl 1994–present

Seat 13 Seat established on March 24, 1940 by 54 Stat. 219 (temporary) Seat became permanent upon the abolition of Seat 7 on December 31, 1943 Bright 1941–1948 S. Kaufman 1948–1955 Cashin 1955–1965 Mansfield 1966–1971 Knapp 1972–1987 R. Patterson, Jr. 1988–1998 Daniels 2000–2021 Rochon 2022–present

Seat 14 Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 I. Kaufman 1949–1961 Cannella 1963–1977 Lowe 1978–1991 Cote 1994–2011 Failla 2013–present

Seat 15 Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 McGohey 1950–1970 Brieant, Jr. 1971–2007 Gardephe 2008–2023 Vargas 2024–present

Seat 16 Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 Noonan 1950–1964 Frankel 1965–1978 Sofaer 1979–1985 Mukasey 1987–2006 Sullivan 2007–2018 Rearden 2022–present

Seat 17 Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 Sugarman 1950–1971 Stewart, Jr. 1972–1985 Cedarbaum 1986–1998 Buchwald 1999–2012 Torres 2013–present

Seat 18 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 Walsh 1954–1957 MacMahon 1959–1982 Keenan 1983–1996 McMahon 1998–2021 Clarke 2023–present

Seat 19 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 Palmieri 1954–1972 Conner 1973–1987 McKenna 1990–2002 Castel 2003–2017 Halpern 2020–present

Seat 20 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Croake 1961–1972 R. Carter 1972–1986 Conboy 1987–1993 Jones 1995–2013 Woods III 2013–present

Seat 21 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Bonsal 1962–1976 Leval 1977–1993 Stein 1995–2010 Nathan 2011–2022 Subramanian 2023–present

Seat 22 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Cooper 1962–1972 Duffy 1972–1998 Berman 1998–2011 Román 2013–present

Seat 23 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Feinberg 1961–1966 Pollack 1967–1983 Leisure 1984–1997 Pauley III 1998–2018 Cronan 2020–present

Seat 24 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Tyler, Jr. 1962–1975 Broderick 1976–1988 Schwartz 1993–2003 Karas 2004–present

Seat 25 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Wyatt 1962–1977 Sweet 1978–1991 Baer, Jr. 1994–2004 Crotty 2005–2015 Liman 2019–present

Seat 26 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Bauman 1971–1974 Goettel 1976–1993 Kaplan 1994–2011 Abrams 2012–present

Seat 27 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Gagliardi 1971–1985 Daronco 1987–1988 Freeh 1991–1993 Scheindlin 1994–2011 Schofield 2012–2025 vacant 2025–present

Seat 28 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Griesa 1972–2000 Swain 2000–present

Seat 29 Seat established on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 Chin 1994–2010 Oetken 2011–present

See also

• Courts of New York
• For the People, a 2018 fictional television drama about the lawyers and judges of the Southern District
• List of current United States district judges
• List of judges of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York
• Legal affairs of Donald Trump (disambiguation)
• List of United States federal courthouses in New York

References

1. "Southern District of New York". United States Department of Justice. November 13, 2014.
2. Burak, H. Paul (May 1, 1962). History of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (PDF) (Report). Federal Bar Association of New York, New Jersey & Connecticut. p. 1. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
3. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York: A Retrospective (1990-2000) (Report). The New York County Lawyers’ Association. December 2002. p. 11. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
4. Zirin, James D. (2014). The Mother Court: Tales of Cases that Mattered in America's Greatest Trial Court. Chicago, Illinois: American Bar Association. pp. x. ISBN 978-1-62722-322-5.
5. Smith, Allan (March 25, 2019). "'We know how to do this better than anybody': Southern District of NY on the job after Mueller probe ends". NBC News. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
6. Zirin, James D. (2014). The Mother Court: Tales of Cases that Mattered in America's Greatest Trial Court. Chicago, Illinois: American Bar Association. pp. ix, xiii. ISBN 978-1-62722-322-5.
7. Weiser, Benjamin; Rashbaum, William K. (March 10, 2017). "With Preet Bharara's Dismissal, Storied Office Loses Its Top Fighter". New York Times. In past presidential transitions, the storied office, long known to be so independent of Washington that some people referred to it as the Sovereign District of New York, has in large measure moved forward unaffected by politics.
8. Weiser, Benjamin (January 29, 2009). "A Steppingstone for Law's Best and Brightest". The New York Times. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
9. 28 U.S.C. § 112(b),(c).
10. "Homepage | U.S District Court".
11. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/meet-us-attorney
12. "Southern District of New York 225th Anniversary". history.nysd.uscourts.gov. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
13. Asbury Dickens, A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America (1852), p. 386.
14. U.S. District Courts of New York, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center.
15. "92 STAT. 885" (PDF).
16. Taylor, Susan (April 15, 2022). "110 Years Later: Titanic Lawsuits Follow Tragedy | In Custodia Legis". The Library of Congress. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
17. District), United States District Court (New York : Southern (1918). The "Lusitania." Opinion of Court, United States District Court, Southern District of New York. American Association for International Conciliation.
18. "Slocum Disaster, June 15, 1904". National Archives. August 15, 2016. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
19. "United States v. Rosenberg, 109 F. Supp. 108 (S.D.N.Y. 1953)". Justia Law. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
20. "United States v. Hiss, 107 F. Supp. 128 (S.D.N.Y. 1952)". Justia Law. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
21. Birmingham, Kevin (2013). "The Prestige of the Law: Revisiting Obscenity Law and Judge Woolsey's "Ulysses" Decision". James Joyce Quarterly. 50 (4): 991–1009. ISSN 0021-4183. JSTOR 24598724.
22. Dunlap, David W. (June 30, 2016). "1971 | Supreme Court Allows Publication of Pentagon Papers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
23. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York: A Retrospective (1990-2000) (Report). The New York County Lawyers’ Association. December 2002. p. 11. Retrieved October 7, 2024.
24. "United States v. Yousef, 927 F. Supp. 673 (S.D.N.Y. 1996)". Justia Law. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
25. Hurtado, Patricia (February 2, 2011). "Maersk Pirate's Lawyers Seek 27-Year Prison Term". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
26. Forrest, Katherine B. (August 23, 2017). "Matt Hosseinzadeh, Plaintiff, v. Ethan Klein and Hila Klein, Defendants". United States District Court, S.D. New York (cv-3081). Retrieved December 12, 2017.
27. Hamilton, Colby. "Cohen's 'Blind Loyalty' Leads to 3-Year Prison Term", New York Law Journal via Law.com, December 12, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
28. "Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen jailed for 36 months". BBC News. December 12, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
29. "Patrick Ho, Former Head Of Organization Backed By Chinese Energy Conglomerate, Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For International Bribery And Money Laundering Offenses". March 25, 2019.
30. "Feibleman v. Trs. of Columbia Univ. in N.Y., 19-CV-4327 (VEC) | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
31. "Reality Show Cast Member Jennifer Shah Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Running Nationwide Telemarketing Fraud Scheme". January 6, 2023.
32. "Sean Combs Charged In Manhattan Federal Court With Sex Trafficking And Other Federal Offenses". www.justice.gov. September 17, 2024. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
33. "Ghislaine Maxwell Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Conspiring With Jeffrey Epstein To Sexually Abuse Minors". www.justice.gov. June 28, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
34. | docket = 22-cv-10016
35. An Act for the better organization of the courts of the United States within the State of New York . April 9, 1814 – via Wikisource.

External links

• Official website for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
• Official website for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York
• Official website for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York
• Official website of the Southern District Court Reporters