Harry Vearle Payne
Appointed by President John F. Kennedy in 1963 and confirmed by voice vote, Harry Vearle Payne was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1908–1983
- Appointed by
- John F. Kennedy, 1963
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Succeeded
- Carl A. Hatch
- Succeeded by
- Santiago E. Campos
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | District of New Mexico succeeded Carl A. Hatch | Kennedy (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
| Read law | 1934 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Payne authored 15 published opinions for the court (1968–1979). Most cited: Montoya v. Dairyland Insurance Company (26 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Montoya v. Dairyland Insurance Company | 394 F. Supp. 1337 | 26 |
| 1968 | Moya v. DeBaca | 286 F. Supp. 606 | 22 |
| 1979 | Weissman v. City of Alamogordo, NM | 472 F. Supp. 425 | 4 |
| 1979 | VOLKSWAGENWERK, AG v. Smith | 471 F. Supp. 385 | 4 |
| 1974 | United States v. Wohl Shoe Company | 369 F. Supp. 386 | 4 |
| 1973 | State of New Mexico v. Tartaglia | 365 F. Supp. 171 | 4 |
| 1971 | In Re Contempt Proceedings Against Acuff | 331 F. Supp. 819 | 4 |
| 1978 | Gonzales v. Califano | 452 F. Supp. 411 | 3 |
| 1977 | United States v. Bunker Livestock Commission, Inc. | 437 F. Supp. 1079 | 3 |
| 1975 | United States v. 40,021.64 ACRES OF LAND, ETC., NEW MEXICO | 387 F. Supp. 839 | 3 |
| 1973 | Tewa Tesuque v. Morton | 360 F. Supp. 452 | 3 |
| 1971 | Reyes v. Laborers' International Union of North America, Local Union No. 16 | 327 F. Supp. 978 | 3 |
| 1971 | Bassham v. Owens-Corning Fiber Glass Corporation | 327 F. Supp. 1007 | 3 |
| 1968 | Noyd v. Bond | 285 F. Supp. 785 | 2 |
| 1978 | Albuquerque National Bank v. United States | 443 F. Supp. 742 | 0 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 15 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 Harry Vearle Payne?
- President John F. Kennedy appointed Harry Vearle Payne to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico in 1963.
- Was Harry Vearle Payne appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Harry Vearle Payne was appointed by President John F. Kennedy, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Harry Vearle Payne's confirmation vote?
- Harry Vearle Payne was confirmed by voice vote on March 19, 1963. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Harry Vearle Payne on?
- Harry Vearle Payne was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
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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20 years on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).