Who appointed Dana Lewis Christensen?

President Barack Obama appointed Dana Lewis Christensen to the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana in 2011.

Was Dana Lewis Christensen appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?

Dana Lewis Christensen was appointed by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.

What was Dana Lewis Christensen's confirmation vote?

Dana Lewis Christensen was confirmed by voice vote on December 5, 2011. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.

District of Montana / Appointed 2011 / Senior status since 2025

Dana Lewis Christensen

Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Montana

Appointed by President Barack Obama in 2011 and confirmed by voice vote, Dana Lewis Christensen is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. He earned a law degree from University of Montana School of Law in 1976. Sources ↓

Born: 1951 · age 75
Appointed by: Barack Obama, 2011
Confirmed: by voice vote
Education: Stanford 1973 · University of Montana Law 1976
Succeeded: Donald W. Molloy
Succeeded by: William Walter Mercer

Federal judicial service

Year	Court	Appointed by	Vote
2011	District of Montana succeeded Donald W. Molloy	Obama (D)	Voice vote

Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own. A voice vote means the chamber approved aloud. No senator-by-senator tally is recorded.

Confirmation vote

Voice vote

The Senate approved this confirmation aloud, with no senator-by-senator tally recorded. Recorded roll-call votes begin in 1989.

Education

Stanford University	B.A.	1973
University of Montana School of Law	J.D.	1976

Judicial Record

Caseload & case types

In our data, Christensen was assigned 1,316 district-court cases (2004–2026). Median time from filing to termination: 174 days across 1,194 closed cases.

Other civil matters31%

Prisoner & habeas17%

Contract12%

Personal-injury torts9%

Other federal statutes7%

Civil rights7%

Other17%

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 314 of Christensen’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 257 were affirmed, 32 reversed or vacated, and 25 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 Dana Lewis Christensen?: President Barack Obama appointed Dana Lewis Christensen to the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana in 2011.
Was Dana Lewis Christensen appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?: Dana Lewis Christensen was appointed by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
What was Dana Lewis Christensen's confirmation vote?: Dana Lewis Christensen was confirmed by voice vote on December 5, 2011. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
Which court is Dana Lewis Christensen on?: Dana Lewis Christensen is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana.

Sources

Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.

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14 years on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).