United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana

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United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana
(W.D. La.)
Map
WDLA map.PNG
Appeals to Fifth Circuit
Established March 3, 1881
Judges assigned 7
Chief judge Robert G. James
Official site

The United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana (in case citations, W.D. La.) is a United States federal court with jurisdiction over approximately two thirds of the state of Louisiana, with courts in Alexandria, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe and Shreveport. These cities comprise the Western District of Louisiana.

Appeals from the Western District of Louisiana are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

Contents

[edit] Jurisdiction

The parishes that fall under the jurisdiction of this district are as follows:

Acadia Parish, Louisiana; Allen Parish, Louisiana; Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana; Beauregard Parish, Louisiana; Bienville Parish, Louisiana; Bossier Parish, Louisiana; Caddo Parish, Louisiana; Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana; Caldwell Parish, Louisiana; Cameron Parish, Louisiana; Catahoula Parish, Louisiana; Claiborne Parish, Louisiana; Concordia Parish, Louisiana; Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana; De Soto Parish, Louisiana; East Carroll Parish, Louisiana; Evangeline Parish, Louisiana, Franklin Parish, Louisiana, Grant Parish, Louisiana, Iberia Parish, Louisiana, Jackson Parish, Louisiana, Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, La Salle Parish, Louisiana, Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, Madison Parish, Louisiana, Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Red River Parish, Louisiana, Richland Parish, Louisiana, Sabine Parish, Louisiana, Saint Landry Parish, Louisiana, Saint Martin Parish, Louisiana, Saint Mary Parish, Louisiana, Tensas Parish, Louisiana, Union Parish, Louisiana, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, Vernon Parish, Louisiana, Webster Parish, Louisiana, West Carroll Parish, Louisiana, and Winn Parish, Louisiana.

[edit] History

On March 26, 1804, Congress organized the Territory of Orleans and created the United States District Court for the District of Orleans - the only time Congress provided a territory with a district court equal in its authority and jurisdiction to those of the states.[1] The United States District Court for the District of Louisiana was established on April 8, 1812, by 2 Stat. 701,[1][2] several weeks before Louisiana was formally admitted as a state of the union. The District was thereafter subdivided and reformed several times. It was first subdivided into Eastern and Western Districts on March 3, 1823, by 3 Stat. 774.[1][2]

On February 13, 1845, Louisiana was reorganized into a single District with one judgeship, by 5 Stat. 722,[1] but was again divided into Eastern and the Western Districts on March 3, 1849, by 9 Stat. 401.[1] Congress again abolished the Western District of Louisiana and reorganized Louisiana as a single judicial district on July 27, 1866, by 14 Stat. 300.[1] On March 3, 1881, by 21 Stat. 507, Louisiana was for a third time divided into Eastern and the Western Districts, with one judgeship authorized for each.[1] The Middle District was formed from portions of those two Districts on December 18, 1971, by 85 Stat. 741.[1]

[edit] U.S. Attorneys

[1]

A partial list of United States attorneys, including some serving when Louisiana was a territory prior to becoming a state, is as follows:

[edit] Current judges

# Title Judge Duty station Born Term of service Appointed by
Active Chief Senior
26 Chief Judge Robert G. James Monroe 1946 1998–present 2009–present — Clinton
22 District Judge Richard T. Haik Lafayette 1950 1991–present 2002–2009 — G.H.W. Bush
24 District Judge Rebecca F. Doherty Lafayette 1952 1991–present — — G.H.W. Bush
27 District Judge Dee D. Drell Alexandria 1947 2003–present — — G.W. Bush
28 District Judge Patricia Head Minaldi Lake Charles 1959 2003–present — — G.W. Bush
29 District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. Shreveport 1952 2003–present — — G.W. Bush
30 District Judge Elizabeth Erny Foote Shreveport 1953 2010–present — — Obama
15 Senior District Judge Thomas E. Stagg Jr. Shreveport 1923 1974–1992 1984–1991 1992–present Nixon
21 Senior District Judge Donald Ellsworth Walter Shreveport 1936 1985–2001 (none) 2001–present Reagan
23 Senior District Judge James Travis Trimble, Jr. Alexandria / Lake Charles 1932 1991–2002 (none) 2002–present G.H.W. Bush
25 Senior District Judge Tucker L. Melancon Lafayette 1946 1994–2009 (none) 2009–present Clinton

[edit] Former judges

Judge Appointed by Began active
service		 Ended active
service		 Ended senior
status		 End reason
Alexander Boarman James A. Garfield 01881-05-18 May 18, 1881 01916-08-30 August 30, 1916 – death
Henry Boyce Zachary Taylor 01849-05-09 May 9, 1849[3] 01861-02-19 February 19, 1861 – resignation
W. Eugene Davis Gerald Ford 01976-09-21 September 21, 1976 01983-12-09 December 9, 1983 – reappointment
Benjamin C. Dawkins, Sr. Calvin Coolidge 01924-05-05 May 5, 1924 01953-05-17 May 17, 1953 01966-08-22 August 22, 1966 death
Benjamin Cornwell Dawkins Jr. Dwight D. Eisenhower 01953-08-03 August 3, 1953 01973-08-06 August 6, 1973 01984-08-31 August 31, 1984 death
John Dick James Monroe 01821-03-02 March 2, 1821 01824-04-23 April 23, 1824 – death
John Malcolm Duhe Jr. Ronald Reagan 01984-06-11 June 11, 1984 01988-11-09 November 9, 1988 – reappointment
Samuel Hadden Harper Andrew Jackson 01829-03-07 March 7, 1829 01837-07-19 July 19, 1837 – death
Edwin Ford Hunter Jr. Dwight D. Eisenhower 01953-10-03 October 3, 1953[4] 01976-02-19 February 19, 1976 02002-02-22 February 22, 2002 death
George W. Jack Woodrow Wilson 01917-03-16 March 16, 1917 01924-03-15 March 15, 1924 – death
Philip Kissick Lawrence Martin Van Buren 01837-09-12 September 12, 1837 01841-03-19 March 19, 1841 – death
F. A. Little, Jr. Ronald Reagan 01984-10-12 October 12, 1984 02002-05-30 May 30, 2002 02006-05-15 May 15, 2006 retirement
Theodore Howard McCaleb John Tyler, Sr. 01841-09-03 September 3, 1841 01845-02-13 February 13, 1845 – assignment to another court
Gaston Louis Noel Porterie Franklin D. Roosevelt 01939-02-09 February 9, 1939 01953-03-24 March 24, 1953 – death
Richard Johnson Putnam John F. Kennedy 01961-09-18 September 18, 1961 01975-12-19 December 19, 1975 02002-12-16 December 16, 2002 death
Thomas B. Robertson James Monroe 01824-05-26 May 26, 1824 01828-10-05 October 5, 1828 – death
Nauman Scott Richard Nixon 01970-10-15 October 15, 1970 01984-12-04 December 4, 1984 02001-09-19 September 19, 2001 death
John Malach Shaw Jimmy Carter 01979-09-26 September 26, 1979 01996-11-15 November 15, 1996 01999-12-24 December 24, 1999 death
Earl Ernest Veron Jimmy Carter 01977-08-05 August 5, 1977 01990-02-13 February 13, 1990 01990-08-28 August 28, 1990 death

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h U.S. District Courts of Louisiana, Legislative history, Federal Judicial Center.
  2. ^ a b Asbury Dickens, A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America (1852), p. 392.
  3. ^ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 21, 1849, confirmed by the United States Senate on August 2, 1850, and received commission on August 2, 1850.
  4. ^ Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 11, 1954, confirmed by the United States Senate on February 9, 1954, and received commission on February 10, 1954.

[edit] External links

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