Jack Edward Tanner
Appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1978 and confirmed by voice vote, Jack Edward Tanner was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington. He earned a law degree from University of Washington School of Law in 1955. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1919–2006
- Appointed by
- Jimmy Carter, 1978
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- University of Washington Law 1955
- Succeeded
- William Nelson Goodwin
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Eastern District of Washington succeeded William Nelson Goodwin | Carter (D) | Voice vote |
| 1978 | Western District of Washington succeeded William Nelson Goodwin | 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
Caseload & case types
In our data, Tanner was assigned 1,197 district-court cases (1978–2005). Median time from filing to termination: 313 days across 1,197 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.
In our data, Tanner authored 3 published opinions for the court (1981–1983). Most cited: Puyallup Tribe of Indians v. Port of Tacoma (7 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Puyallup Tribe of Indians v. Port of Tacoma | 525 F. Supp. 65 | 7 |
| 1983 | AM. FED. OF ST., CTY. & MUN. EMP. v. State of Wash. | 578 F. Supp. 846 | 2 |
| 1983 | Benjamin L. v. United States | 592 F. Supp. 701 | 2 |
Showing the 3 most-cited of 3 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 Jack Edward Tanner?
- President Jimmy Carter appointed Jack Edward Tanner to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in 1978.
- Was Jack Edward Tanner appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Jack Edward Tanner was appointed by President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Jack Edward Tanner's confirmation vote?
- Jack Edward Tanner was confirmed by voice vote on May 17, 1978. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Jack Edward Tanner on?
- Jack Edward Tanner was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington.
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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Appointed in 1978. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).