Title: United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia - Wikipedia
Headings: United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia
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Contents
Organization of the court
Current judges
Former judges
Chief judges
Succession of seats
See also
References
External links

Content: #
Title
Judge
Duty station
Born
Term of service
Appointed by
Active
Chief
Senior
17
Chief Judge
Thomas E. Johnston
Charleston
1967
2006–present
2017–present
—
G.W. Bush
15
District Judge
Joseph Robert Goodwin
Charleston
1942
1995–present
2007–2012
—
Clinton
16
District Judge
Robert Charles Chambers
Huntington
1952
1997–present
2012–2017
—
Clinton
18
District Judge
Irene C. Berger
Charleston
1954
2009–present
—
—
Obama
19
District Judge
Frank W. Volk
Beckley
1965
2019–present
—
—
Trump
10
Senior Judge
John Thomas Copenhaver Jr.
Charleston
1925
1976–2018
—
2018–present
Ford
14
Senior Judge
David A. Faber
Bluefield
1942
1991–2008
2002–2007
2008–present
G.H.W. Bush
Former judges
#
Judge
State
Born–died
Active service
Chief Judge
Senior status
Appointed by
Reason for
termination
1
Benjamin Franklin Keller
WV
1857–1921
1901–1921
—
—
McKinley
death
2
George Warwick McClintic
WV
1866–1942
1921–1941
—
1941–1942
Harding
death
3
Harry Evans Watkins
WV
1898–1963
1937–1963
—
—
F. Roosevelt
death
4
Ben Moore
WV
1891–1958
1941–1958
1948–1958
—
F. Roosevelt
death
5
John A. Field Jr.
WV
1910–1995
1959–1971
1959–1971
—
Eisenhower
elevation to 4th Cir. 6
Sidney Lee Christie
WV
1903–1974
1964–1974
1971–1973
—
L. Johnson
death
7
Dennis Raymond Knapp
WV
1912–1998
1970–1983
1973–1982
1983–1998
Nixon
death
8
Kenneth Keller Hall
WV
1918–1999
1971–1976
—
—
Nixon
elevation to 4th Cir. 9
Charles Harold Haden II
WV
1937–2004
1975–2004
1982–2002
—
Ford
death
11
Robert Jackson Staker
WV
1925–2008
1979–1994
—
1994–2005
Carter
retirement
12
William Matthew Kidd
WV
1918–1998
1979–1983
—
—
Carter
seat abolished
13
Elizabeth Virginia Hallanan
WV
1925–2004
1983–1996
—
1996–2004
Reagan
death
Chief judges
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 as senior status or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old.