U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Fourth 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.
| Judge | Appointed by | Since |
|---|---|---|
| Frederick Pfarr Stamp Jr. | Bush (R) | 1990 |
| Irene Patricia Murphy Keeley | Bush (R) | 1992 |
| John Preston Bailey | Bush (R) | 2007 |
| Gina Marie Groh | Obama (D) | 2012 |
| Thomas Shawn Kleeh | Trump (R) | 2018 |
| Judge | Appointed by | Years |
|---|---|---|
| W. Craig Broadwater | Clinton (D) | 1996–2006 |
| William Matthew Kidd | (reassignment) (N) | 1983–1998 |
| Charles Harold Haden II | Ford (R) | 1975–1983 |
| Robert Earl Maxwell | Johnson (D) | 1965–2010 |
| Sidney Lee Christie | Johnson (D) | 1964–1974 |
| Charles Ferguson Paul | Eisenhower (R) | 1960–1965 |
| Herbert Stephenson Boreman | Eisenhower (R) | 1954–1959 |
| Harry Evans Watkins | Roosevelt (D) | 1937–1963 |
| William Eli Baker | Harding (R) | 1921–1954 |
| Alston Gordon Dayton | Roosevelt (R) | 1905–1920 |
| John Jay Jackson Jr. | (reassignment) (N) | 1901–1905 |
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 1901.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-06-28. Verify against the primary source before relying.