United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania

The United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania (in case citations, W.D. Pa.) is a federal trial court that sits in Pittsburgh, Erie, and Johnstown, Pennsylvania. It is composed of ten judges as authorized by federal law. Appeals from this court are heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third 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 Western District of Pennsylvania
(W.D. Pa.)
Western District in green
Location	Joseph F. Weis, Jr. U.S. Courthouse (Pittsburgh) More locations Erie Federal Courthouse (Erie) Johnstown
Appeals to	Third Circuit
Established	April 20, 1818
Judges	10
Chief Judge	Mark R. Hornak
Officers of the court
U.S. Attorney	Eric G. Olshan
U.S. Marshal
PaWD.uscourts.gov

Federal Courthouse, Erie, Pennsylvania

Federal Courthouse, Pittsburgh

History

The United States District Court for the District of Pennsylvania was one of the original 13 courts established by the Judiciary Act of 1789, 1 Stat. 73, on September 24, 1789. It was subdivided on April 20, 1818, by 3 Stat. 462, into the Eastern and Western Districts to be headquartered in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, respectively. The court began its first session on December 7, 1818 at the Old County Courthouse in Pittsburgh. Portions of these districts were subsequently subdivided into the Middle District on March 2, 1901, by 31 Stat. 880. At the time of its initial subdivision, presiding judge Richard Peters Jr. was reassigned to only the Eastern District. This made it possible for President James Monroe to appoint Jonathan Hoge Walker as the first judge of the Western District of Pennsylvania.

The Erie courthouse and division was split from Pittsburgh for initial actions in January 1867, with the Johnstown courthouse and division being split from Pittsburgh for initial actions in 1989.

Current judges

As of October 6, 2024^[update]:

#	Title	Judge	Duty station	Born	Term of service			Appointed by
					Active	Chief	Senior
56	Chief Judge	Mark R. Hornak	Pittsburgh	1956	2011–present	2018–present	—	Obama
57	District Judge	Cathy Bissoon	Pittsburgh	1968	2011–present	—	—	Obama
58	District Judge	Susan Paradise Baxter	Erie	1956	2018–present	—	—	Trump
59	District Judge	Marilyn Horan	Pittsburgh	1954	2018–present	—	—	Trump
61	District Judge	Nicholas Ranjan	Pittsburgh	1978	2019–present	—	—	Trump
62	District Judge	William S. Stickman IV	Pittsburgh	1979	2019–present	—	—	Trump
63	District Judge	Stephanie L. Haines	Johnstown	1969	2019–present	—	—	Trump
64	District Judge	Robert J. Colville	Pittsburgh	1965	2019–present	—	—	Trump
65	District Judge	W. Scott Hardy	Pittsburgh	1971	2020–present	—	—	Trump
66	District Judge	Christy C. Wiegand	Pittsburgh	1975	2020–present	—	—	Trump
45	Senior Judge	Donetta Ambrose	inactive	1945	1993–2010	2002–2009	2010–present	Clinton
49	Senior Judge	Joy Flowers Conti	Pittsburgh	1948	2002–2018	2013–2018	2018–present	G.W. Bush
50	Senior Judge	David S. Cercone	Pittsburgh Erie	1952	2002–2017	—	2017–present	G.W. Bush
52	Senior Judge	Arthur J. Schwab	Pittsburgh	1946	2002–2018	—	2018–present	G.W. Bush
53	Senior Judge	Kim R. Gibson	Johnstown	1948	2003–2016	—	2016–present	G.W. Bush
55	Senior Judge	Nora Barry Fischer	Pittsburgh	1951	2007–2019	—	2019–present	G.W. Bush

Former judges

#	Judge	State	Born–died	Active service	Chief Judge	Senior status	Appointed by	Reason for termination
1	Jonathan Hoge Walker	PA	1754–1824	1818–1824	—	—	Monroe	death
2	William Wilkins	PA	1779–1865	1824–1831	—	—	Monroe	resignation
3	Thomas Irwin	PA	1785–1870	1831–1859	—	—	Jackson	resignation
4	Wilson McCandless	PA	1810–1882	1859–1876	—	—	Buchanan	retirement
5	Winthrop Welles Ketcham	PA	1820–1879	1876–1879	—	—	Grant	death
6	Marcus Wilson Acheson	PA	1828–1906	1880–1891	—	—	Hayes	elevation to 3d Cir.
7	James Hay Reed	PA	1853–1927	1891–1892	—	—	B. Harrison	resignation
8	Joseph Buffington	PA	1855–1947	1892–1906	—	—	B. Harrison	elevation to 3d Cir.
9	Nathaniel Ewing	PA	1848–1914	1906–1908	—	—	T. Roosevelt	resignation
10	James Scott Young	PA	1848–1914	1908–1914	—	—	T. Roosevelt	death
11	Charles Prentiss Orr	PA	1858–1922	1909–1922	—	—	Taft	death
12	W. H. Seward Thomson	PA	1856–1932	1914–1928	—	1928–1932	Wilson	death
13	Robert Murray Gibson	PA	1869–1949	1922–1949	1948–1949	1949–1949	Harding	death
14	Frederic Palen Schoonmaker	PA	1870–1945	1922–1945	—	—	Harding	death
15	Nelson McVicar	PA	1871–1960	1928–1951	1949–1951	1951–1960	Coolidge	death
16	Wallace Samuel Gourley	PA	1904–1976	1945–1969	1951–1969	1969–1976	Truman	death
17	Frederick Voris Follmer	PA	1885–1971	1946–1955	—	—	Truman	seat abolished
18	Owen McIntosh Burns	PA	1892–1952	1949–1952	—	—	Truman	death
19	Rabe Ferguson Marsh Jr.	PA	1905–1993	1950–1977	1969–1975	1977–1993	Truman	death
20	William Alvah Stewart	PA	1903–1953	1951–1953	—	—	Truman	death
21	Joseph Putnam Willson	PA	1902–1998	1953–1968	—	1968–1998	Eisenhower	death
22	John Lester Miller	PA	1901–1978	1954–1971	—	1971–1978	Eisenhower	death
23	John Wilson McIlvaine	PA	1907–1963	1955–1963	—	—	Eisenhower	death
24	Herbert Peter Sorg	PA	1911–1979	1955–1976	1975–1976	1976–1979	Eisenhower	death
25	Edward Dumbauld	PA	1905–1997	1961–1976	—	1976–1997	Kennedy	death
26	Louis Rosenberg	PA	1898–1999	1961–1976	—	1976–1999	Kennedy	death
27	Gerald Joseph Weber	PA	1914–1989	1964–1988	1976–1982	1988–1989	L. Johnson	death
28	Joseph F. Weis Jr.	PA	1923–2014	1970–1973	—	—	Nixon	elevation to 3d Cir.
29	William W. Knox	PA	1911–1981	1970–1981	—	—	Nixon	death
30	Hubert Irving Teitelbaum	PA	1915–1995	1970–1985	1982–1985	1985–1995	Nixon	death
31	Barron Patterson McCune	PA	1915–2008	1970–1985	—	1985–2008	Nixon	death
32	Ralph Francis Scalera	PA	1930–2011	1971–1976	—	—	Nixon	resignation
33	Daniel John Snyder Jr.	PA	1916–1980	1973–1980	—	—	Nixon	death
34	Maurice Blanchard Cohill Jr.	PA	1929–2022	1976–1994	1985–1992	1994–2022	Ford	death
35	Paul Allen Simmons	PA	1921–2014	1978–1990	—	1990–2014	Carter	death
36	Gustave Diamond	PA	1928–2021	1978–1994	1992–1994	1994–2021	Carter	death
37	Donald Emil Ziegler	PA	1936–2019	1978–2001	1994–2001	2001–2003	Carter	retirement
38	Alan N. Bloch	PA	1932–2024	1979–1997	—	1997–2024	Carter	death
39	Carol Los Mansmann	PA	1942–2002	1982–1985	—	—	Reagan	elevation to 3d Cir.
40	Glenn Everell Mencer	PA	1925–2007	1982–1994	—	1994–2007	Reagan	death
41	William Lloyd Standish	PA	1930–2015	1987–2002	—	2002–2015	Reagan	death
42	D. Brooks Smith	PA	1951–present	1988–2002	2001–2002	—	Reagan	elevation to 3d Cir.
43	Donald J. Lee	PA	1927–2011	1990–2000	—	2000–2011	G.H.W. Bush	death
44	Timothy K. Lewis	PA	1954–present	1991–1992	—	—	G.H.W. Bush	elevation to 3d Cir.
46	Gary L. Lancaster	PA	1949–2013	1993–2013	2009–2013	—	Clinton	death
47	Robert J. Cindrich	PA	1943–present	1994–2004	—	—	Clinton	resignation
48	Sean J. McLaughlin	PA	1955–present	1994–2013	2013	—	Clinton	resignation
51	Terrence F. McVerry	PA	1943–2021	2002–2013	—	2013–2021	G.W. Bush	death
54	Thomas Hardiman	PA	1965–present	2003–2007	—	—	G.W. Bush	elevation to 3d Cir.
60	Peter J. Phipps	PA	1973–present	2018–2019	—	—	Trump	elevation to 3d Cir.

1. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 7, 1831, confirmed by the United States Senate on March 21, 1832, and received commission the same day.
2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 3, 1906, confirmed by the Senate on December 11, 1906, and received commission the same day.
3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 6, 1928, confirmed by the Senate on December 17, 1928, and received commission the same day.
4. Jointly appointed to the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Pennsylvania
5. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 5, 1950, confirmed by the Senate on March 8, 1950, and received commission on March 9, 1950.
6. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1962, confirmed by the Senate on July 10, 1962, and received commission on July 12, 1962.

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 established on April 20, 1818 by 3 Stat. 462 Walker 1818–1824 Wilkins 1824–1831 Irwin 1832–1859 McCandless 1859–1876 Ketcham 1876–1879 Acheson 1880–1891 Reed, Sr. 1891–1892 Buffington 1892–1906 Ewing 1906–1908 Young 1908–1914 Thomson 1914–1928 McVicar 1928–1951 Stewart 1951–1953 Miller 1954–1971 Scalera 1971–1976 Simmons 1978–1990 Lewis 1991–1992 Lancaster 1993–2013 Horan 2018–present

Seat 2 Seat established on February 26, 1909 by 35 Stat. 656 Orr 1909–1922 R. Gibson 1922–1949 Marsh Jr. 1950–1977 Ziegler 1978–2001 McVerry 2002–2013 Phipps 2018–2019 Wiegand 2020–present

Seat 3 Seat established on September 14, 1922 by 42 Stat. 837 (temporary) Seat made permanent on August 19, 1935 by 49 Stat. 659 Schoonmaker 1922–1945 Gourley 1945–1969 Teitelbaum 1970–1985 Lee 1990–2000 Cercone 2002–2017 Haines 2019–present

Seat 4 Seat established on July 24, 1946 by 60 Stat. 654 (temporary, concurrent with Middle and Eastern Districts) Seat made permanent on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 Follmer 1946–1955 Seat statutorily assigned solely to the Middle District on June 1, 1955

Seat 5 Seat established on August 3, 1949 by 63 Stat. 493 (temporary) Seat made permanent on August 29, 1950 by 64 Stat. 562 Burns 1950–1952 Willson 1953–1968 Weis Jr. 1970–1973 Snyder Jr. 1973–1980 Mencer 1982–1994 McLaughlin 1994–2013 Baxter 2018–present

Seat 6 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 McIlvaine 1955–1963 Weber 1964–1988 Ambrose 1993–2010 Hornak 2011–present

Seat 7 Seat established on February 10, 1954 by 68 Stat. 8 (temporary) Seat made permanent on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Sorg 1955–1976 Bloch 1979–1997 Conti 2002–2018 Stickman IV 2019–present

Seat 8 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Dumbauld 1961–1976 Diamond 1978–1994 Cindrich 1994–2004 Fischer 2007–2019 Hardy 2020–present

Seat 9 Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 Rosenberg 1962–1976 Cohill Jr. 1976–1994 Schwab 2002–2018 Colville 2019–present

Seat 10 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 Knox 1970–1981 Mansmann 1982–1985 Smith 1988–2002 K. Gibson 2003–2016 Ranjan 2019–present

Seat 11 Seat established on June 2, 1970 by 84 Stat. 294 McCune 1970–1985 Standish IV 1987–2002 Hardiman 2003–2007 Bissoon 2011–present

United States attorneys

United States attorneys for the district have included:

• James Hamilton March 11, 1801
• Andrew Stewart April 20, 1818
• March 3, 1821
• October 22, 1830
• October 22, 1832
• June 12, 1839
• Cornelius Darragh March 25, 1841
• March 29, 1844
• John L. Dawson July 22, 1845
• J. Bowman Sweitzer August 27, 1850
• April 19, 1853
• April 21, 1857
• April 12, 1861
• January 24, 1870
• March 24, 1874
• June 29, 1876
• William A. Stone July 6, 1880
• December 4, 1886
• Walter Lyon June 21, 1889
• April 26, 1893
• June 8, 1893
• September 14, 1897
• James S. Young February 10, 1902
• March 17, 1905
• April 15, 1909
• September 10, 1913
• September 2, 1918
• August 20, 1919
• June 1, 1920
• D. J. Driscoll August 19, 1920
• Walter Lyon March 11, 1921
• July 18, 1925
• Louis Edward Graham October 31, 1929
• August 17, 1933
• May 12, 1941
• Owen McIntosh Burns May 16, 1947
• Edward C. Boyle November 3, 1949
• John W. McIlvaine July 16, 1953
• August 19, 1955
• Hubert I. Teitelbaum March 17, 1958
• Joseph S. Ammerman June 5, 1961
• Gustave Diamond February 2, 1963
• Richard L. Thornburgh June 4, 1969
• July 7, 1975
• Robert J. Cindrich September 29, 1978
• July 31, 1981
• January 15, 1989
• Thomas W. Corbett November 30, 1989
• August 16, 1993
• Linda L. Kelly August 1, 1997
• Harry Litman October 22, 1998
• Linda L. Kelly April 28, 2001
• Mary Beth Buchanan – September 18, 2001
• – November 17, 2009
• David J. Hickton – August 12, 2010
• (acting) – November 29, 2016
• Scott Brady – December 22, 2017
• Cindy Chung – November 2021
• Troy Rivetti (acting) – February 17, 2023
• Eric G. Olshan – June 12, 2023

See also

• Courts of Pennsylvania
• List of current United States district judges
• List of United States federal courthouses in Pennsylvania

References

1. Asbury Dickens, A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America (1852), p. 388.
2. U.S. District Courts of Pennsylvania, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center.
3. "Untitled Document". www.pawd.uscourts.gov. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
4. "About The Office – USAO-WDPA – Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 14 July 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
5. "Beaver County Times – Google News Archive Search". Retrieved 2015-12-02.
6. "PN1299 - Nomination of Cindy K. Chung for Department of Justice, 117th Congress (2021-2022)". www.congress.gov. 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
7. "Troy Rivetti to Serve as Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania" (Press release). Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania. February 17, 2023. Retrieved February 19, 2023.

External links

• Official site