Cathy Bissoon
Appointed by President Barack Obama in 2011 and confirmed by the Senate 82–3, Cathy Bissoon is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. She earned a law degree from Harvard Law School in 1993. Sources ↓
- Born
- 1968 · age 58
- Appointed by
- Barack Obama, 2011
- Confirmed
- 82–3
- Education
- Alfred 1990 · Harvard Law School 1993
- Succeeded
- Thomas Michael Hardiman
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Western District of Pennsylvania succeeded Thomas Michael Hardiman | Obama (D) | 82–3 |
Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own.
Confirmation vote
Nomination Confirmed 82–3 on October 17, 2011 · 112th Congress, Roll Call 166. Each senator links to their judicial-voting record.
Voted to confirm · 82
45 D, 35 R, 2 I
- Daniel Akaka(D-HI)
- Lamar Alexander(R-TN)
- Kelly Ayotte(R-NH)
- John Barrasso(R-WY)
- Max Baucus(D-MT)
- Mark Begich(D-AK)
- Michael Bennet(D-CO)
- Jeff Bingaman(D-NM)
- Richard Blumenthal(D-CT)
- John Boozman(R-AR)
- Barbara Boxer(D-CA)
- Sherrod Brown(D-OH)
- Scott Brown(R-MA)
- Benjamin Cardin(D-MD)
- Thomas Carper(D-DE)
- Bob Casey(D-PA)
- Saxby Chambliss(R-GA)
- Dan Coats(R-IN)
- Tom Coburn(R-OK)
- Thad Cochran(R-MS)
- Susan Collins(R-ME)
- Kent Conrad(D-ND)
- Christopher Coons(D-DE)
- Bob Corker(R-TN)
- John Cornyn(R-TX)
- Mike Crapo(R-ID)
- Richard Durbin(D-IL)
- Michael Enzi(R-WY)
- Dianne Feinstein(D-CA)
- Al Franken(D-MN)
- Kirsten Gillibrand(D-NY)
- Chuck Grassley(R-IA)
- Kay Hagan(D-NC)
- Tom Harkin(D-IA)
- John Hoeven(R-ND)
- Kay Hutchison(R-TX)
- Daniel Inouye(D-HI)
- Mike Johanns(R-NE)
- Tim Johnson(D-SD)
- Ron Johnson(R-WI)
- John Kerry(D-MA)
- Mark Kirk(R-IL)
- Herb Kohl(D-WI)
- Jon Kyl(R-AZ)
- Mary Landrieu(D-LA)
- Frank Lautenberg(D-NJ)
- Patrick Leahy(D-VT)
- Mike Lee(R-UT)
- Carl Levin(D-MI)
- Joe Lieberman(I-CT)
- Richard Lugar(R-IN)
- Joe Manchin(D-WV)
- John McCain(R-AZ)
- Mitch McConnell(R-KY)
- Robert Menendez(D-NJ)
- Jeff Merkley(D-OR)
- Barbara Mikulski(D-MD)
- Jerry Moran(R-KS)
- Lisa Murkowski(R-AK)
- Patty Murray(D-WA)
- Bill Nelson(D-FL)
- Ben Nelson(D-NE)
- Rob Portman(R-OH)
- Mark Pryor(D-AR)
- Jack Reed(D-RI)
- Harry Reid(D-NV)
- Pat Roberts(R-KS)
- Jay Rockefeller(D-WV)
- Bernard Sanders(I-VT)
- Charles Schumer(D-NY)
- Jeff Sessions(R-AL)
- Jeanne Shaheen(D-NH)
- Richard Shelby(R-AL)
- Olympia Snowe(R-ME)
- Debbie Stabenow(D-MI)
- Jon Tester(D-MT)
- John Thune(R-SD)
- Pat Toomey(R-PA)
- Mark Udall(D-CO)
- David Vitter(R-LA)
- Mark Warner(D-VA)
- Sheldon Whitehouse(D-RI)
Voted against · 3
3 R
- Roy Blunt(R-MO)
- Jim Inhofe(R-OK)
- Rand Paul(R-KY)
Did not vote · 15
6 D, 9 R
- Richard Burr(R-NC)
- Maria Cantwell(D-WA)
- James DeMint(R-SC)
- Lindsey Graham(R-SC)
- Orrin Hatch(R-UT)
- Dean Heller(R-NV)
- Johnny Isakson(R-GA)
- Amy Klobuchar(D-MN)
- Claire McCaskill(D-MO)
- James Risch(R-ID)
- Marco Rubio(R-FL)
- Tom Udall(D-NM)
- James Webb(D-VA)
- Roger Wicker(R-MS)
- Ron Wyden(D-OR)
Education
| Alfred University | B.A. | 1990 |
| Harvard Law School | J.D. | 1993 |
Judicial Record
Caseload & case types
In our data, Bissoon was assigned 2,322 district-court cases (1988–2026). Median time from filing to termination: 176 days across 2,087 closed cases.
Case assignment is from CourtListener’s PACER-derived docket records: a partial sample, not a complete caseload, reflecting the judge last assigned each case. How we count.
On appeal
Of 185 of Bissoon’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 154 were affirmed, 18 reversed or vacated, and 13 affirmed in part and reversed in part. This is a historical count of appellate outcomes for cases we could match, not a judgment of the judge, and not a complete record. How we count.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Cathy Bissoon?
- President Barack Obama appointed Cathy Bissoon to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania in 2011.
- Was Cathy Bissoon appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Cathy Bissoon was appointed by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Cathy Bissoon's confirmation vote?
- The Senate confirmed Cathy Bissoon 82–3 on October 17, 2011.
- Which court is Cathy Bissoon on?
- Cathy Bissoon is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: US District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
- Confirmation roll-call (Senate.gov, 2011)
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
See something wrong? Report an error. Fixes are logged in the corrections log.
14 years on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).