United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi (in case citations, N.D. Miss.) is a federal court in the Fifth Circuit with facilities in Aberdeen, Ackerman, Clarksdale, Cleveland, Corinth, Greenville, and Oxford.

United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi
(N.D. Miss.)
LocationOxford
More locations
Appeals toFifth Circuit
EstablishedJune 18, 1838
Judges3
Chief JudgeSharion Aycock
Officers of the court
U.S. AttorneyWilliam C. Lamar
U.S. MarshalDaniel McKittrick
www.msnd.uscourts.gov

Appeals from cases brought in the Northern District of Mississippi 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).

The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. The current United States Attorney is William C. Lamar.

Jurisdiction

The northern district comprises three divisions.

  1. The Aberdeen Division comprises the counties of Alcorn, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Itawamba, Lee, Lowndes, Monroe, Oktibbeha, Prentiss, Tishomingo, Webster and Winston.
    The court for the Aberdeen Division is held at Aberdeen, Ackerman and Corinth.
  2. The Oxford Division comprises the counties of Benton, Calhoun, DeSoto, Lafayette, Marshall, Panola, Pontotoc, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tunica, Union and Yalobusha.
    The court for the Oxford Division is held at Oxford.
  3. The Greenville Division comprises the counties of Attala, Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, Grenada, Humphreys, Leflore, Montgomery, Sunflower and Washington.
    The court for the Greenville Division is held at Clarksdale, Cleveland and Greenville.

Current judges

As of June 2, 2014:

# Title Judge Duty station Born Term of service Appointed by
Active Chief Senior
15 Chief Judge Sharion Aycock Aberdeen 1955 2007–present 2014–present — G.W. Bush
14 District Judge Michael P. Mills Oxford 1956 2001–present 2007–2014 — G.W. Bush
16 District Judge Debra M. Brown Greenville 1963 2013–present — — Obama
11 Senior Judge Neal Brooks Biggers Jr. Oxford 1935 1984–2000 1998–2000 2000–present Reagan
12 Senior Judge Glen H. Davidson Aberdeen 1941 1985–2007 2000–2007 2007–present Reagan

Former judges
# Judge State Born–died Active service Chief Judge Senior status Appointed by Reason for
termination
1 George Adams MS 1784–1844 1838[Note 1][Note 2] — — Jackson/Operation of law resignation
2 Samuel J. Gholson MS 1808–1883 1839–1861[Note 2] — — Van Buren resignation
3 Robert Andrews Hill MS 1811–1900 1866–1891[Note 2] — — A. Johnson retirement
4 Henry Clay Niles MS 1850–1918 1891–1918[Note 3][Note 2] — — B. Harrison death
5 Edwin R. Holmes MS 1878–1961 1918–1929[Note 2] — — Wilson seat abolished
6 Elijah Allen Cox MS 1887–1974 1929–1957 — 1957–1974 Coolidge death
7 Claude Feemster Clayton MS 1909–1969 1958–1967 1966–1967 — Eisenhower elevation to 5th Cir.
8 William Colbert Keady MS 1913–1989 1968–1983 1968–1982 1983–1989 L. Johnson death
9 Orma Rinehart Smith MS 1904–1982 1968–1978 — 1978–1982 L. Johnson death
10 Lyonel Thomas Senter Jr. MS 1933–2011 1979–1998 1982–1998 1998–2011 Carter death
13 W. Allen Pepper Jr. MS 1941–2012 1999–2012 — — Clinton death
  1. Reassigned from the District of Mississippi
  2. Jointly appointed to the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi
  3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 10, 1891, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 11, 1892, and received commission the same day

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. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

Succession of seats

See also

Footnotes

    Further reading
    • David M. Hargrove, Mississippi's Federal Courts: A History. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 2019.

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