Robert E. Cowen
Appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1987 and confirmed by voice vote, Robert E. Cowen is a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He earned a law degree from Rutgers School of Law -- Newark in 1958. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. Opinions & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Born
- 1930 · age 96
- Appointed by
- Ronald Reagan, 1987
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Drake 1952 · Rutgers Law -- Newark 1958
- Succeeded
- James Hunter III
- Succeeded by
- Julio M. Fuentes
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | District of New Jersey | Reagan (R) | Voice vote |
| 1987 | Third Circuit succeeded James Hunter III | 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
| Drake University | B.S. | 1952 |
| Rutgers School of Law -- Newark | LL.B. | 1958 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Cowen authored 6 published opinions for the court (1986–1987). Most cited: Mellon Bank (East), N.A. v. Glick (In Re Integrated Testing Products Corp.) (24 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Mellon Bank (East), N.A. v. Glick (In Re Integrated Testing Products Corp.) | 69 B.R. 901 | 24 |
| 1987 | Artway v. Scheidemantel | 671 F. Supp. 330 | 10 |
| 1986 | East Wind Industries, Inc. v. United States, Department of the Treasury (In Re East Wind Industries, Inc.) | 61 B.R. 408 | 10 |
| 1986 | Sciarotta v. Secretary of Health & Human Services | 647 F. Supp. 132 | 5 |
| 1986 | Tiger Inn v. Edwards | 636 F. Supp. 787 | 3 |
| 1987 | Patterson v. Beyer | 665 F. Supp. 364 | 1 |
Showing the 6 most-cited of 6 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 Robert E. Cowen?
- President Ronald Reagan appointed Robert E. Cowen to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in 1987.
- Was Robert E. Cowen appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Robert E. Cowen was appointed by President Ronald Reagan, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Robert E. Cowen's confirmation vote?
- Robert E. Cowen was confirmed by voice vote on November 6, 1987. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court is Robert E. Cowen on?
- Robert E. Cowen is a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: Evecowen (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons
- CourtListener bulk data (Free Law Project): authored opinions & citation counts
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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38 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).