Algernon Lee Butler (August 2, 1905 – September 5, 1978) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina The United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina (in case citations, E.D.N.C.) is the United States district court that serves the eastern 44 counties in North Carolina. Appeals from the Eastern District of North Caroli ...

Education and career

Born in

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, Butler attended the

University of North Carolina School of Law The University of North Carolina School of Law is the law school of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Established in 1845, Carolina Law is among the oldest law schools in the United States and is the oldest law school in North Carol ...

, and

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

in 1928 to enter the bar. He entered private practice in Clinton in 1928, and was a member of the

North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the House, who holds powers similar to those of the President pro-tem in the North Ca ...

in 1931, and a county attorney of

Sampson County Sampson County is the largest county, by land area, in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 59,036. Its county seat is Clinton. History Sampson County was established in April 1784 following the American ...

, North Carolina from 1938 to 1951.

Federal judicial service

On July 28, 1959, Butler was nominated by President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

to a seat on the

vacated by Judge

Donnell Gilliam Donnell Gilliam (March 12, 1889 – March 6, 1960) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Education and career Born in Tarboro, North Carolina, Gilliam received a Bache ...

. Butler was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on August 28, 1959, and received his commission on August 31, 1959. He served as Chief Judge from 1961 to 1975, assuming

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

on August 2, 1975, and serving in that capacity until his death on September 5, 1978.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Algernon Lee 1905 births 1978 deaths Members of the North Carolina House of Representatives Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina United States district court judges appointed by Dwight D. Eisenhower 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from Clinton, North Carolina 20th-century American politicians