U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
New York · A federal trial court, where federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. Appeals go to the Second Circuit.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Second Circuit, which reviews its decisions on appeal. This page lists every judge to serve on the court, current and former, with who appointed them and whom they succeeded.
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.
Judges in active service
- Margo K. Brodie
- Pamela K. M. Chen
- LaShann M. D. Hall
- Ann M. Donnelly
- Gary R. Brown
- Eric R. Komitee
- Rachel P. Kovner
- Diane Gujarati
- Hector Gonzalez
- Nina R. Morrison
- Nusrat J. Choudhury
- Orelia E. Merchant
- Natasha C. Merle
- Ramon E. Reyes Jr.
- Sanket J. Bulsara
Senior judges
Still members of the court: senior judges have stepped back from a full docket but continue to hear cases.
- Israel L. Glasser
- Edward R. Korman
- Raymond J. Dearie
- Carol B. Amon
- Denis R. Hurley
- Joanna Seybert
- Frederic Block
- Allyne R. Ross
- Nina Gershon
- Nicholas Garaufis
- Dora L. Irizarry
- Brian M. Cogan
- Eric N. Vitaliano
- Kiyo A. Matsumoto
- William F. Kuntz II
- Joan M. Azrack
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.
Eric Nicholas Vitaliano (current) · Eric Ross Komitee (current) · Diane Gujarati (current) · Frederic Block (current) · Brian Mark Cogan (current) · Hector Gonzalez (current) · Dora L. Irizarry (current) · Nina Rauh Morrison (current) · Israel Leo Glasser (current) · Allyne R. Ross (current) · Margo Kitsy Brodie (current) · Nina Gershon (current) · William Francis Kuntz II (current) · Orelia Eleta Merchant (current) · Nicholas Garaufis (current) · LaShann Moutique DeArcy Hall (current) · Gary Richard Brown (current) · Carol Bagley Amon (current) · Rachel Peter Kovner (current) · Ann Marie Donnelly (current) · Edward Robert Korman (current) · Kiyo A. Matsumoto (current) · Ramon Ernesto Reyes Jr. (current) · Raymond Joseph Dearie (current) · Pamela Ki Mai Chen (current) · Denis Reagan Hurley (current) · Nusrat Jahan Choudhury (current) · Joanna Seybert (current) · Joan Marie Azrack (current) · Sanket Jayshukh Bulsara (current) · Natasha Clarise Merle (current) · Jack Bertrand Weinstein · Thomas Collier Platt Jr. · Jacob Mishler
Former judges
Magistrate judges
Appointed by the judges of this district to renewable 8-year terms, not nominated by the president or confirmed by the Senate. They handle pretrial matters, misdemeanors, and many civil cases by consent.
| Magistrate judge | Years |
|---|---|
| Taryn A. Merkl | 2021–present |
| James M. Wicks | 2021–present |
| Sanket J. Bulsara | 2017–present |
| Steven L. Tiscione | 2016–present |
| Peggy Kuo | 2015–present |
| Anne Shields | 2015–present |
| Steven I. Locke | 2014–present |
| Vera M. Scanlon | 2012–present |
| Gary R. Brown | 2011–present |
| Ramon E. Reyes Jr. | 2006–present |
| A. Kathleen Tomlinson | 2006–present |
| Lois Bloom | 2001–present |
| Robert M. Levy | 1995–present |
| Cheryl Pollak | 1995–present |
| Arlene R. Lindsay | 1994–present |
| Roanne L. Mann | 1994–present |
| Steven M. Gold | 1993–present |
| James R. Cho | 2021–2029 |
| James Orenstein | 2004–2020 |
| William D Wall | 2000–2015 |
| E Thomas Boyle | 1995–2012 |
| Viktor V Pohorelsky | 1995–2015 |
| Marilyn D Go | 1993–2019 |
Bankruptcy court
Practicing before this court
The rules that govern a case here (the E.D. New York’s local rules, standing orders, and each judge’s own procedures) live on the court’s official site. Direct links:
Links to the court’s own site, verified 2026-07-05. Rules change. Confirm against the court’s current posting before filing.
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 1865. This court is also served by magistrate judges, listed above, whom the district’s own judges appoint. Read more on how federal judges are appointed.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory and CourtListener / Free Law Project (bulk data). Data as of 2026-08-10 (FJC); magistrates 2026-03-31 (CourtListener bulk snapshot). Verify against the primary source before relying.