Robert James Shelby
Appointed by President Barack Obama in 2012 and confirmed by voice vote, Robert James Shelby is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah. He earned a law degree from University of Virginia School of Law in 1998. Sources ↓
- Born
- 1970 · age 56
- Appointed by
- Barack Obama, 2012
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Utah State 1994 · University of Virginia Law 1998
- Succeeded
- Tena Campbell
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | District of Utah succeeded Tena Campbell | Obama (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
| Utah State University | B.A. | 1994 |
| University of Virginia School of Law | J.D. | 1998 |
Judicial Record
Caseload & case types
In our data, Shelby was assigned 1,633 district-court cases (1983–2026). Median time from filing to termination: 302 days across 1,395 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 85 of Shelby’s decisions reviewed on the merits by the U.S. courts of appeals in our data, 69 were affirmed, 8 reversed or vacated, and 8 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.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Robert James Shelby?
- President Barack Obama appointed Robert James Shelby to the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah in 2012.
- Was Robert James Shelby appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Robert James Shelby was appointed by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Robert James Shelby's confirmation vote?
- Robert James Shelby was confirmed by voice vote on September 22, 2012. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court is Robert James Shelby on?
- Robert James Shelby is a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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13 years on the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).