Appointing president
Judges appointed by John Adams
President John Adams filled 10 lifetime federal judgeships, including 3 on the Supreme Court.
What this list covers. Every lifetime (Article III) appointment in the Federal Judicial Center’s directory: 3 Supreme Court · 4 district courts · 3 other. Bankruptcy and magistrate judges are appointed by the courts, not the president, and fixed-term (Article I) judgeships such as the U.S. Tax Court aren’t attributed to a president here.
Jump to: Supreme Court (3) · District Courts (4) · Other courts (3)
Supreme Court · 3
| Judge | Court | Vote | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Marshall | Supreme Court | Voice | 1801 |
| Alfred Moore | Supreme Court | Voice | 1799 |
| Bushrod Washington | Supreme Court | Voice | 1798 |
District Courts · 4
| Judge | Court | Vote | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Davis | District of Massachusetts | Voice | 1801 |
| John Sloss Hobart | District of New York | Voice | 1798 |
| Elijah Paine | District of Vermont | Voice | 1801 |
| James Winchester | District of Maryland | Voice | 1799 |
Other courts · 3
| Judge | Court | Vote | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin Bourne | U.S. Circuit Court for the First Circuit | Voice | 1801 |
| Samuel Hitchcock | U.S. Circuit Court for the Second Circuit | Voice | 1801 |
| John Lowell | U.S. Circuit Court for the First Circuit | Voice | 1801 |
Vote “–”: no recorded tally or vote type in the FJC record.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory (the complete record of Article III federal judges). Data last verified 2026-08-15. Verify against the primary source before relying.