| United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee | |
|---|---|
| (M.D. Tenn.) | |
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| Location | Fred D. Thompson Federal Building & Courthouse More locations |
| Appeals to | Sixth Circuit |
| Established | June 18, 1839 |
| Judges | 4 |
| Chief Judge | William L. Campbell Jr. |
| Officers of the court | |
| U.S. Attorney | Robert E. McGuire (acting)[1] |
| U.S. Marshal | Denny Wade King |
| www | |
TheUnited States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee (incase citations,M.D. Tenn.) is the federal trial court for most ofMiddle Tennessee. Based at theEstes Kefauver Federal Building and United States Courthouse inNashville, it was created in 1839 when Congress added a third district to the state. Tennessee—along withKentucky,Ohio, andMichigan—is located within the area covered byUnited States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and appeals are taken to that court (except forpatent claims and claims against the U.S. government under theTucker Act, which are appealed to theFederal Circuit).
As of January 11, 2023[update] theUnited States attorney isHenry C. Leventis.
The Middle District has three divisions.(1) The Columbia Division comprises the counties ofGiles,Hickman,Lawrence,Lewis,Marshall,Maury, andWayne.(2) The Northeastern Division comprises the counties ofClay,Cumberland,DeKalb,Fentress,Jackson,Macon,Overton,Pickett,Putnam,Smith, andWhite.(3) The Nashville Division comprises the counties ofCannon,Cheatham,Davidson,Dickson,Houston,Humphreys,Montgomery,Robertson,Rutherford,Stewart,Sumner,Trousdale,Williamson, andWilson.
TheUnited States District Court for the District of Tennessee was established with one judgeship on January 31, 1797, by 1 Stat. 496.[2][3] The judgeship was filled by PresidentGeorge Washington's appointment ofJohn McNairy. Since Congress failed to assign the district to a circuit, the court had the jurisdiction of both a district court and a circuit court. Appeals from this one district court went directly to the United States Supreme Court.
On February 13, 1801, in the famous "Midnight Judges" Act of 1801, 2 Stat. 89, Congress abolished the U.S. district court in Tennessee,[3] and expanded the number of circuits to six, provided for independent circuit court judgeships, and abolished the necessity of Supreme Court Justices riding the circuits. It was this legislation which created the grandfather of the present Sixth Circuit. The act provided for a "Sixth Circuit" comprising two districts in the State of Tennessee, one district in the State of Kentucky and one district, called the Ohio District, composed of the Ohio and Indiana territories (the latter including the present State of Michigan). The new Sixth Circuit Court was to be held at "Bairdstown" in the District of Kentucky, at Knoxville in the District of East Tennessee, at Nashville in the District of West Tennessee, and at Cincinnati in the District of Ohio. Unlike the other circuits which were provided with three circuit judges, the Sixth Circuit was to have only one circuit judge with district judges from Kentucky and Tennessee comprising the rest of the court. Any two judges constituted a quorum. New circuit judgeships were to be created as district judgeships in Kentucky and Tennessee became vacant.[4]
The repeal of this Act restored the District on March 8, 1802, 2 Stat. 132.[3] The District was divided into theEastern andWestern Districts on April 29, 1802.[2] On February 24, 1807, Congress again abolished the two districts and created the United States Circuit for the District of Tennessee. On March 3, 1837, Congress assigned the judicial district of Tennessee to the Eighth Circuit. On June 18, 1839, by 5 Stat. 313, Congress divided Tennessee into three districts, Eastern, Middle, and Western.[2][3][5] Again, only one judgeship was allotted for all three districts. On July 15, 1862, Congress reassigned appellate jurisdiction to the Sixth Circuit. Finally, on June 14, 1878, Congress authorized a separate judgeship for the Western District of Tennessee, at which time PresidentRutherford B. Hayes appointedDavid M. Key as judge for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Tennessee. The first judge to serve only the Middle District of Tennessee wasJohn J. Gore, appointed byWarren G. Harding.
As of April 15, 2024[update]:
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Appointed by | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active | Chief | Senior | ||||||
| 23 | Chief Judge | William L. Campbell Jr. | Nashville | 1969 | 2018–present | 2024–present | — | Trump |
| 19 | District Judge | Aleta Arthur Trauger | Nashville | 1945 | 1998–present | — | — | Clinton |
| 22 | District Judge | Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. | Nashville | 1956 | 2016–present | 2017–2024 | — | Obama |
| 24 | District Judge | Eli J. Richardson | Nashville | 1967 | 2018–present | — | — | Trump |
| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Morgan Welles Brown | TN | 1800–1853 | 1839–1853[Note 1] | — | — | Jackson/Operation of law | death |
| 2 | West Hughes Humphreys | TN | 1806–1882 | 1853–1862[Note 1] | — | — | Pierce | impeachment and conviction |
| 3 | Connally Findlay Trigg | TN | 1810–1880 | 1862–1880[Note 2][Note 3] | — | — | Lincoln | death |
| 4 | David M. Key | TN | 1824–1900 | 1880–1895[Note 2] | — | — | Hayes | retirement |
| 5 | Charles Dickens Clark | TN | 1847–1908 | 1895–1908[Note 2] | — | — | Cleveland | death |
| 6 | Edward Terry Sanford | TN | 1865–1930 | 1908–1923[Note 2] | — | — | T. Roosevelt | elevation toSupreme Court |
| 7 | John J. Gore | TN | 1878–1939 | 1923–1939 | — | — | Harding | death |
| 8 | Xenophon Hicks | TN | 1872–1952 | 1923–1928[Note 2] | — | — | Harding | elevation to6th Cir. |
| 9 | Leslie Rogers Darr | TN | 1886–1967 | 1939–1940[Note 2] | — | — | F. Roosevelt | seat abolished |
| 10 | Elmer David Davies | TN | 1899–1957 | 1939–1957 | 1954–1957 | — | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 11 | William Ernest Miller | TN | 1908–1976 | 1955–1970 | 1961–1970 | — | Eisenhower | elevation to6th Cir. |
| 12 | Frank Gray, Jr. | TN | 1908–1978 | 1961–1977[Note 4] | 1970–1977 | 1977–1978 | Kennedy | death |
| 13 | Leland Clure Morton | TN | 1916–1998 | 1970–1984 | 1977–1984 | 1984–1998 | Nixon | death |
| 14 | Thomas Anderton Wiseman Jr. | TN | 1930–2020 | 1978–1995 | 1984–1991 | 1995–2011 | Carter | retirement |
| 15 | John Trice Nixon | TN | 1933–2019 | 1980–1998 | 1991–1998 | 1998–2019 | Carter | death |
| 16 | Thomas Aquinas Higgins | TN | 1932–2018 | 1984–1999 | — | 1999–2018 | Reagan | death |
| 17 | Robert L. Echols | TN | 1941–present | 1992–2007 | 1998–2005 | 2007–2010 | G.H.W. Bush | retirement |
| 18 | Todd J. Campbell | TN | 1956–2021 | 1995–2016 | 2005–2012 | 2016–2021 | Clinton | death |
| 20 | William Joseph Haynes Jr. | TN | 1949–present | 1999–2014 | 2012–2014 | 2014–2017 | Clinton | retirement |
| 21 | Kevin H. Sharp | TN | 1963–present | 2011–2017 | 2014–2017 | — | Obama | resignation |
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known assenior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.
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