Luther Merritt Swygert
Appointed by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 and confirmed by voice vote, Luther Merritt Swygert was a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He earned a law degree from Notre Dame Law School in 1927. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. Opinions & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1905–1988
- Appointed by
- John F. Kennedy, 1961
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Notre Dame Law School 1927
- Succeeded by
- Jesse Ernest Eschbach
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1943 | Northern District of Indiana succeeded Thomas Whitten Slick | F.D. Roosevelt (D) | Voice vote |
| 1961 | Seventh Circuit | 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
| Notre Dame Law School | LL.B. | 1927 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Swygert authored 20 published opinions for the court (1945–1961). Most cited: Midwest Beverage Co. v. Gates (26 citations).
Published, precedential opinions from the CourtListener corpus. Counts and rankings are objective and recomputable: how we count. We describe the record, not the judge.
Selected opinions
| Year | Case | Citation | Cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | Midwest Beverage Co. v. Gates | 61 F. Supp. 688 | 26 |
| 1951 | Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. Rectenwall | 97 F. Supp. 273 | 23 |
| 1947 | Linde Air Products Co. v. Graver Tank & Mfg. Co. | 86 F. Supp. 191 | 23 |
| 1961 | Abele v. A. L. Dougherty Overseas, Inc. | 192 F. Supp. 955 | 22 |
| 1957 | Frank R. Jelleff, Inc. v. Pollak Bros., Incorporated | 171 F. Supp. 467 | 21 |
| 1958 | Jacobson v. Indianapolis Power & Light Company | 163 F. Supp. 218 | 18 |
| 1958 | Herrick v. Sayler | 160 F. Supp. 25 | 17 |
| 1960 | Getreu v. Bartenders & Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union | 181 F. Supp. 738 | 13 |
| 1957 | HMH Publishing Co. v. Garrett | 151 F. Supp. 903 | 13 |
| 1954 | General Motors Corp. v. Bendix Aviation Corp. | 123 F. Supp. 506 | 9 |
| 1948 | Local 309, United Furniture Workers of America v. Gates | 75 F. Supp. 620 | 9 |
| 1946 | General Electric Co. v. Gojack | 68 F. Supp. 686 | 8 |
| 1959 | Ein v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company | 173 F. Supp. 497 | 6 |
| 1961 | United States v. National Homes Corporation | 196 F. Supp. 370 | 5 |
| 1960 | SINCLAIR REFINING COMPANY v. Atkinson | 187 F. Supp. 225 | 5 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 20 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 Luther Merritt Swygert?
- President John F. Kennedy appointed Luther Merritt Swygert to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 1961.
- Was Luther Merritt Swygert appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Luther Merritt Swygert was appointed by President John F. Kennedy, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Luther Merritt Swygert's confirmation vote?
- Luther Merritt Swygert was confirmed by voice vote on September 23, 1961. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Luther Merritt Swygert on?
- Luther Merritt Swygert was a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
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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26 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).