Richard Wellington McLaren
Appointed by President Richard M. Nixon in 1972 and confirmed by voice vote, Richard Wellington McLaren was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He earned a law degree from Yale Law School in 1942. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1918–1976
- Appointed by
- Richard M. Nixon, 1972
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Yale College 1939 · Yale Law School 1942
- Succeeded
- Julius Jennings Hoffman
- Succeeded by
- Stanley Julian Roszkowski
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Northern District of Illinois succeeded Julius Jennings Hoffman | Nixon (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
| Yale College | B.A. | 1939 |
| Yale Law School | LL.B. | 1942 |
Judicial Record
In our data, McLaren authored 49 published opinions for the court (1972–1976). Most cited: Garza v. Chicago Health Clubs, Inc. (96 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Garza v. Chicago Health Clubs, Inc. | 347 F. Supp. 955 | 96 |
| 1976 | Evans, Inc. v. Tiffany & Co. | 416 F. Supp. 224 | 94 |
| 1975 | Lektro-Vend Corp. v. Vendo Company | 403 F. Supp. 527 | 26 |
| 1974 | Technitrol, Inc. v. Memorex Corporation | 376 F. Supp. 828 | 23 |
| 1975 | Jamison v. McCurrie | 388 F. Supp. 990 | 19 |
| 1972 | Garland v. Mobil Oil Corporation | 340 F. Supp. 1095 | 19 |
| 1973 | Hill-Vincent v. Richardson | 359 F. Supp. 308 | 17 |
| 1972 | Wright v. Kaine Realty | 352 F. Supp. 222 | 17 |
| 1975 | Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Zenith Radio Corp. | 391 F. Supp. 780 | 15 |
| 1974 | Lemelson v. Ampex Corporation | 372 F. Supp. 708 | 15 |
| 1975 | Gresham v. City of Chicago | 405 F. Supp. 410 | 12 |
| 1972 | Bravo v. Board of Education of City of Chicago | 345 F. Supp. 155 | 12 |
| 1975 | Swansey v. Elrod | 386 F. Supp. 1138 | 11 |
| 1973 | McMackin v. Schwinn Bicycle Company | 354 F. Supp. 1154 | 11 |
| 1973 | Stewart Warner Corp. v. Burns International Security Services, Inc. | 353 F. Supp. 1387 | 11 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 49 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 Richard Wellington McLaren?
- President Richard M. Nixon appointed Richard Wellington McLaren to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 1972.
- Was Richard Wellington McLaren appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Richard Wellington McLaren was appointed by President Richard M. Nixon, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Richard Wellington McLaren's confirmation vote?
- Richard Wellington McLaren was confirmed by voice vote on December 2, 1971. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Richard Wellington McLaren on?
- Richard Wellington McLaren was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
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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4 years on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).