James McGirr Kelly
Appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1983 and confirmed by voice vote, James McGirr Kelly was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He earned a law degree from Temple University School of Law (now James E. Beasley School of Law) in 1957. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1928–2005
- Appointed by
- Ronald Reagan, 1983
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School 1951 · Temple Law (now James E. Beasley School of Law) 1957
- Succeeded
- Emanuel Mac Troutman
- Succeeded by
- Bruce William Kauffman
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Eastern District of Pennsylvania succeeded Emanuel Mac Troutman | Reagan (R) | 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
| University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School | B.S. | 1951 |
| Temple University School of Law (now James E. Beasley School of Law) | J.D. | 1957 |
Judicial Record
Caseload & case types
In our data, Kelly was assigned 2,795 district-court cases (1985–2004). Median time from filing to termination: 200 days across 2,794 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.
On appeal
Of 16 of Kelly’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 16 were affirmed, 0 reversed or vacated. 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.
In our data, Kelly authored 51 published opinions for the court (1983–1986). Most cited: Hooten v. Pennsylvania College of Optometry (42 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Hooten v. Pennsylvania College of Optometry | 601 F. Supp. 1151 | 42 |
| 1984 | Linker v. Custom-Bilt MacHinery Inc. | 594 F. Supp. 894 | 29 |
| 1984 | Kamens v. Summit Stainless, Inc. | 586 F. Supp. 324 | 22 |
| 1984 | United States v. DiBona | 614 F. Supp. 40 | 18 |
| 1984 | Lowe v. Philadelphia Newspapers, Inc. | 594 F. Supp. 123 | 18 |
| 1984 | Watkinson v. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., Inc. | 585 F. Supp. 879 | 18 |
| 1986 | Schwartz v. Pierucci | 60 B.R. 397 | 17 |
| 1983 | Bucks County Playhouse v. Bradshaw | 577 F. Supp. 1203 | 17 |
| 1986 | Braun v. Kelsey-Hayes Co. | 635 F. Supp. 75 | 16 |
| 1986 | Raff v. Gordon | 58 B.R. 988 | 13 |
| 1985 | Sellers v. Local 1598, District Council 88, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO | 614 F. Supp. 141 | 12 |
| 1985 | Ethanol Partners Accredited v. Wiener, Zuckerbrot, Weiss & Brecher | 635 F. Supp. 15 | 11 |
| 1985 | Smithkline Beckman Corp. v. Pennex Products Co. | 605 F. Supp. 746 | 10 |
| 1983 | Hyster Credit Corp. v. O'NEILL | 582 F. Supp. 414 | 10 |
| 1985 | Barlow v. Pep Boys, Inc. | 625 F. Supp. 130 | 9 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 51 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 James McGirr Kelly?
- President Ronald Reagan appointed James McGirr Kelly to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in 1983.
- Was James McGirr Kelly appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- James McGirr Kelly was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was James McGirr Kelly's confirmation vote?
- James McGirr Kelly was confirmed by voice vote on August 4, 1983. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was James McGirr Kelly on?
- James McGirr Kelly was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
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
See something wrong? Report an error. Fixes are logged in the corrections log.
21 years on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).