Roy Laverne Stephenson
Appointed by President Richard M. Nixon in 1971 and confirmed by voice vote, Roy Laverne Stephenson was a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. He earned a law degree from University of Iowa College of Law in 1940. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa. Opinions & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1917–1982
- Appointed by
- Richard M. Nixon, 1971
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- University of Iowa 1938 · University of Iowa College of Law 1940
- Succeeded
- Martin Donald Van Oosterhout
- Succeeded by
- George Gardner Fagg
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Southern District of Iowa succeeded Edwin Richley Hicklin | Eisenhower (R) | Voice vote |
| 1971 | Eighth Circuit succeeded Martin Donald Van Oosterhout | 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
| University of Iowa | B.A. | 1938 |
| University of Iowa College of Law | J.D. | 1940 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Stephenson authored 43 published opinions for the court (1960–1995). Most cited: Baker v. United States (28 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Baker v. United States | 226 F. Supp. 129 | 28 |
| 1963 | Davis v. Synhorst | 217 F. Supp. 492 | 27 |
| 1970 | Beatty v. Bright | 318 F. Supp. 169 | 25 |
| 1962 | Harrison v. City National Bank of Clinton, Iowa | 210 F. Supp. 362 | 23 |
| 1968 | Central Savings & Loan Ass'n of Chariton v. Federal Home Loan Bank Board | 293 F. Supp. 617 | 21 |
| 1995 | Midwest Packaging Corporation v. Oerlikon Plastics, Ltd. | 279 F. Supp. 816 | 18 |
| 1963 | Blunt v. Brown | 225 F. Supp. 326 | 16 |
| 1969 | Sefcheck v. Brewer | 301 F. Supp. 793 | 15 |
| 1966 | Tinker Ex Rel. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District | 258 F. Supp. 971 | 15 |
| 1966 | Barrett v. Burt | 250 F. Supp. 904 | 15 |
| 1967 | Priester v. Vigilant Insurance Co. | 268 F. Supp. 156 | 13 |
| 1965 | Long v. Bacon | 239 F. Supp. 911 | 13 |
| 1964 | Davis v. Synhorst | 225 F. Supp. 689 | 13 |
| 1969 | MJ McGough Company v. Jane Lamb Memorial Hospital | 302 F. Supp. 482 | 12 |
| 1967 | Williams v. Vick Chemical Company | 279 F. Supp. 833 | 12 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 43 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 Roy Laverne Stephenson?
- President Richard M. Nixon appointed Roy Laverne Stephenson to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in 1971.
- Was Roy Laverne Stephenson appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Roy Laverne Stephenson was appointed by President Richard M. Nixon, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Roy Laverne Stephenson's confirmation vote?
- Roy Laverne Stephenson was confirmed by voice vote on June 18, 1971. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Roy Laverne Stephenson on?
- Roy Laverne Stephenson was a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth 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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11 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).