Sylvester J. Ryan
Appointed by President Harry S Truman in 1947 and confirmed by voice vote, Sylvester J. Ryan was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He earned a law degree from Fordham University School of Law in 1917. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1896–1981
- Appointed by
- Harry S Truman, 1947
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Fordham Law 1917
- Succeeded
- Francis Gordon Caffey
- Succeeded by
- Henry Frederick Werker
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Southern District of New York succeeded Francis Gordon Caffey | Truman (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
Judicial Record
In our data, Ryan authored 144 published opinions for the court (1948–1984). Most cited: Van Gemert v. Boeing Company (50 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Van Gemert v. Boeing Company | 259 F. Supp. 125 | 50 |
| 1951 | Fay v. American Cystoscope Makers, Inc. | 98 F. Supp. 278 | 47 |
| 1952 | United States v. Rosenberg | 108 F. Supp. 798 | 36 |
| 1965 | Merry Hull & Company v. Hi-Line Co. | 243 F. Supp. 45 | 34 |
| 1951 | United States v. Imperial Chemical Industries, Ltd. | 100 F. Supp. 504 | 34 |
| 1967 | Richland v. Cheatham | 272 F. Supp. 148 | 33 |
| 1949 | Freiday v. Cowdin | 83 F. Supp. 516 | 31 |
| 1953 | Leonia Amusement Corp. v. Loew's Inc. | 117 F. Supp. 747 | 29 |
| 1952 | United States v. Imperial Chemical Industries, Ltd. | 105 F. Supp. 215 | 27 |
| 1955 | Combined Bronx Amusements, Inc. v. Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. | 132 F. Supp. 921 | 26 |
| 1950 | Ferguson v. Ford Motor Co. | 89 F. Supp. 45 | 26 |
| 1963 | United States v. Chas. Pfizer & Co. | 217 F. Supp. 199 | 24 |
| 1960 | Kook v. Crang | 182 F. Supp. 388 | 24 |
| 1949 | Nola Electric Co. v. Reilly | 93 F. Supp. 164 | 24 |
| 1948 | Ferguson v. Ford Motor Co. | 77 F. Supp. 425 | 24 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 144 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 Sylvester J. Ryan?
- President Harry S Truman appointed Sylvester J. Ryan to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in 1947.
- Was Sylvester J. Ryan appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Sylvester J. Ryan was appointed by President Harry S Truman, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Sylvester J. Ryan's confirmation vote?
- Sylvester J. Ryan was confirmed by voice vote on December 18, 1947. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Sylvester J. Ryan on?
- Sylvester J. Ryan was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
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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33 years on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).