U.S. Court of Claims
Washington, D.C. · A specialized federal court.
The U.S. Court of Claims was the federal court that heard monetary claims against the United States from 1855 until 1982, when it was abolished: its trial work passed to the new Article I Court of Federal Claims and its appellate work to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Its judges were nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. This page lists every judge to serve on the court.
Party letters here are the appointing president’s, never a judge’s own: D Democratic, R Republican, N pre-modern-party era (Federalist, Whig, and other early parties); “–” means no recorded party. Counts cover the court’s entire history.
Current judges
No currently serving judges on record.
Seats over time
Each band is one judgeship, from the court’s founding to today. A segment’s width is the holder’s tenure; its color is the appointing president’s party. Gaps are vacancies.
Former judges
How a judge gets here. Each judge is nominated by a president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, then holds a numbered seat, for life, until they take senior status, or until they leave the bench. Open any judge to see who appointed them, how the Senate voted, and whom they succeeded, a chain that runs back to 1855. Read more on how federal judges are appointed.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data as of 2026-08-10 (FJC). Verify against the primary source before relying.