Michael H. Watson
Appointed by President George W. Bush in 2004 and confirmed by voice vote, Michael H. Watson is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. He earned a law degree from Capital University Law School in 1987. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Born
- 1956 · age 70
- Appointed by
- George W. Bush, 2004
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Ohio State 1983 · Capital Law School 1987
- Succeeded
- James L. Graham
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Southern District of Ohio succeeded James L. Graham | G.W. Bush (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
| Ohio State University | B.A. | 1983 |
| Capital University Law School | J.D. | 1987 |
Judicial Record
Caseload & case types
In our data, Watson was assigned 4,268 district-court cases (1984–2026). Median time from filing to termination: 251 days across 3,708 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 298 of Watson’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 228 were affirmed, 41 reversed or vacated, and 29 affirmed in part and reversed in part. 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, Watson authored 22 published opinions for the court (2005–2011). Most cited: Bricker v. R & a PIZZA, INC. (22 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Bricker v. R & a PIZZA, INC. | 804 F. Supp. 2d 615 | 22 |
| 2010 | Shugart v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC | 747 F. Supp. 2d 938 | 16 |
| 2005 | Sosby v. Miller Brewing Co. | 415 F. Supp. 2d 809 | 12 |
| 2005 | Abercrombie & Fitch v. Fashion Shops of Kentucky, Inc. | 363 F. Supp. 2d 952 | 12 |
| 2006 | Damon's Restaurants, Inc. v. Eileen K Inc. | 461 F. Supp. 2d 607 | 11 |
| 2011 | Moore v. Abbott Laboratories | 780 F. Supp. 2d 600 | 9 |
| 2011 | Beverage Distributors, Inc. v. Miller Brewing Co. | 803 F. Supp. 2d 765 | 8 |
| 2010 | Simmons v. Cook | 701 F. Supp. 2d 965 | 7 |
| 2010 | Reinwald v. Huntington National Bank | 684 F. Supp. 2d 975 | 7 |
| 2009 | In Re Huntington Bancshares Inc. Securities Litigation | 674 F. Supp. 2d 951 | 7 |
| 2006 | American Broadcasting Co., Inc. v. Blackwell | 479 F. Supp. 2d 719 | 7 |
| 2011 | Dehlendorf v. City of Gahanna, Ohio | 786 F. Supp. 2d 1358 | 4 |
| 2009 | Spence v. Sheets | 675 F. Supp. 2d 792 | 4 |
| 2010 | Kroger Co. v. SANOFI-AVENTIS | 701 F. Supp. 2d 938 | 3 |
| 2009 | Ferron v. EchoStar Satellite, LLC | 727 F. Supp. 2d 647 | 3 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 22 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 Michael H. Watson?
- President George W. Bush appointed Michael H. Watson to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio in 2004.
- Was Michael H. Watson appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Michael H. Watson was appointed by President George W. Bush, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Michael H. Watson's confirmation vote?
- Michael H. Watson was confirmed by voice vote on September 7, 2004. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court is Michael H. Watson on?
- Michael H. Watson is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
- 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 Southern District of Ohio. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).