Finis E. Cowan
Appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977 and confirmed by voice vote, Finis E. Cowan was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. He earned a law degree from University of Texas School of Law in 1956. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1929–2023
- Appointed by
- Jimmy Carter, 1977
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Rice Institute (now Rice) 1951 · University of Texas Law 1956
- Succeeded
- James Latane Noel Jr.
- Succeeded by
- Hugh Gibson
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Southern District of Texas succeeded James Latane Noel Jr. | 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
Judicial Record
In our data, Cowan authored 23 published opinions for the court (1977–1979). Most cited: Bridgen v. Scott (23 citations).
A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included. Counts and rankings are objective and recomputable: how we count. We describe the record, not the judge.
Recent & notable rulings
| Year | Case | Citation | Cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Bridgen v. Scott | 456 F. Supp. 1048 | 23 |
| 1978 | Howard S. v. Friendswood Independent School District | 454 F. Supp. 634 | 23 |
| 1978 | Guthrie v. Dow Chemical Co. | 445 F. Supp. 311 | 20 |
| 1978 | Burnaman v. Bay City Independent School District | 445 F. Supp. 927 | 17 |
| 1978 | Doe v. Marshall | 459 F. Supp. 1190 | 14 |
| 1978 | United States v. Toussaint | 456 F. Supp. 1069 | 12 |
| 1979 | Harkless v. Sweeny Independent School District | 466 F. Supp. 457 | 10 |
| 1978 | Hemus & Co. v. Hawkins | 452 F. Supp. 861 | 9 |
| 1977 | Ross v. Houston Independent School District | 457 F. Supp. 18 | 8 |
| 1978 | Kite Ex Rel. Kite v. Marshall | 454 F. Supp. 1347 | 7 |
| 1978 | Associated Builders & Contractors of Texas Gulf Coast, Inc. v. United States Department of Energy | 451 F. Supp. 281 | 7 |
| 1978 | Smiley v. Vollert | 453 F. Supp. 463 | 6 |
| 1978 | Dean v. Gladney | 451 F. Supp. 1313 | 6 |
| 1979 | Hayes v. United States | 468 F. Supp. 179 | 5 |
| 1979 | Saucedo v. Brothers Well Service, Inc. | 464 F. Supp. 919 | 4 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 23 authored opinions in our data. “Cited” is inbound citations across the CourtListener corpus. Case links open the ruling’s full text (CourtListener) or its page here; read the methodology and verify against the primary source.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Finis E. Cowan?
- President Jimmy Carter appointed Finis E. Cowan to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in 1977.
- Was Finis E. Cowan appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Finis E. Cowan was appointed by President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Finis E. Cowan's confirmation vote?
- Finis E. Cowan was confirmed by voice vote on June 13, 1977. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Finis E. Cowan on?
- Finis E. Cowan was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- CourtListener bulk data (Free Law Project): authored opinions & citation counts
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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2 years on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).