Who appointed Donald Eugene O'Brien?

President Jimmy Carter appointed Donald Eugene O'Brien to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa in 1978.

Was Donald Eugene O'Brien appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?

Donald Eugene O'Brien was appointed by President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.

What was Donald Eugene O'Brien's confirmation vote?

Donald Eugene O'Brien was confirmed by voice vote on October 4, 1978. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.

Southern District of Iowa / Appointed 1978 / Served to 1990

Donald Eugene O'Brien

Judge, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa

Appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1978 and confirmed by voice vote, Donald Eugene O'Brien was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa. He earned a law degree from Creighton University School of Law in 1948. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa. Sources ↓

Lived: 1923–2015
Appointed by: Jimmy Carter, 1978
Confirmed: by voice vote
Education: Creighton Law 1948
Succeeded: William Cook Hanson

Federal judicial service

Year	Court	Appointed by	Vote
1978	Southern District of Iowa succeeded William Cook Hanson	Carter (D)	Voice vote
1978	Northern District of Iowa succeeded William Cook Hanson	Carter (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

Creighton University School of Law

LL.B.

1948

Judicial Record

Caseload & case types

In our data, O'Brien was assigned 220 district-court cases (1978–1991). Median time from filing to termination: 769 days across 220 closed cases.

Prisoner & habeas53%

Contract16%

Personal-injury torts9%

Civil rights8%

Bankruptcy2%

Other federal statutes2%

Other10%

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.

Questions & answers

Who appointed Donald Eugene O'Brien?: President Jimmy Carter appointed Donald Eugene O'Brien to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa in 1978.
Was Donald Eugene O'Brien appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?: Donald Eugene O'Brien was appointed by President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
What was Donald Eugene O'Brien's confirmation vote?: Donald Eugene O'Brien was confirmed by voice vote on October 4, 1978. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
Which court was Donald Eugene O'Brien on?: Donald Eugene O'Brien was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

Sources

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

How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources

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