Joseph Buffington (September 5, 1855 – October 21, 1947) was a
United States circuit judge
In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. ...
of the
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:
* District of Delaware
* District of New Jersey
* East ...
and of the
United States Circuit Courts for the Third Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the
.
Education and career
Born on September 5, 1855, in
Kittanning,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, Buffington received an
Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1875 from
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to:
Australia
* Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales
* Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
in
Hartford
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...
and
read law in 1878. He entered private practice in Kittanning from 1878 to 1892.
Federal judicial service
Buffington was nominated by President
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...
on February 10, 1892, to a seat on the
vacated by Judge
James Hay Reed
James Hay Reed (September 10, 1853 – June 17, 1927) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. With partner Philander C. Knox, he formed the law firm of Knox and Reed.
E ...
. He 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 February 23, 1892, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on September 26, 1906, due to his elevation to the Third Circuit.
Buffington received a
recess appointment
In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the a ...
from President
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
on September 25, 1906, to a joint seat on the
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:
* District of Delaware
* District of New Jersey
* East ...
and the
United States Circuit Courts for the Third Circuit vacated by Judge
Marcus W. Acheson. He was nominated to the same position by President Roosevelt on December 3, 1906. He was confirmed by the Senate on December 11, 1906, and received his commission the same day. On December 31, 1911, the Circuit Courts were abolished and he thereafter served only on the Court of Appeals. He was a member of the
Conference of Senior Circuit Judges
The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial cour ...
(now the
Judicial Conference of the United States) from 1922 to 1937. He was the last appeals court judge who continued to serve in active service appointed by President Roosevelt. He assumed
senior status
Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...
on June 1, 1938. His service terminated on October 21, 1947, due to his death in
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
, Pennsylvania.
Scandal
During the 1930s, Buffington became involved in a scandal involving his colleague on the Court of Appeals, Judge
John Warren Davis. Buffington was found to have been signing opinions drafted by Davis, in cases in which Davis received bribes. Davis was forced out of office, but no formal action was taken against Buffington, who was described as being "aged, senile, and nearly blind" by that time. He took what is now called
senior status
Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...
, a form of semi-retirement, on June 1, 1938, and ceased hearing cases.
, Why Judges Resign: Influences on Federal Judicial Service, 1789 to 1992 , Emily Field Van Tassel , With Beverly Hudson Wirtz and Peter Wonders , Federal Judicial History Office , Federal Judicial Center , 1993
/ref>
Family
Buffington was the son of Ephraim and Margaret Chambers (Orr) Buffington,[George Thornton Fleming, ''History of Pittsburgh and Environs'' (1922), p. 860-61.] and nephew to a well-known Pennsylvania judge Joseph Buffington (congressman), of the same name. On January 29, 1885, he married Mary Alice Simonton, of Emmitsburg
Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania. Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrima ...
, Maryland.[
]
See also
* List of United States federal judges by longevity of service
This is a list of Article III United States federal judges by longevity of service. The judges on the lists below were presidential appointees who have been confirmed by the Senate, and who served on the federal bench for over 40 years. It includ ...
References
Sources
* Van Tassel, Emily Field, et al., ''Why Judges Resign: Influences on Federal Judicial Service, 1789 to 1992'' (Federal Judicial Center 1993), p. 23.
The Political Graveyard
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buffington, Joseph
1855 births
1947 deaths
People from Kittanning, Pennsylvania
Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Judges of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania lawyers
Pennsylvania state court judges
United States federal judges appointed by Benjamin Harrison
19th-century American judges
United States court of appeals judges appointed by Theodore Roosevelt
20th-century American judges
United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law