The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (in

case citation Case citation is a system used by legal professionals to identify past court case decisions, either in series of books called reporters or law reports, or in a neutral style that identifies a decision regardless of where it is reported. Case ci ...

s, E.D. Pa.) is one of the original 13 federal judiciary districts created by the

Judiciary Act of 1789 The Judiciary Act of 1789 (ch. 20, ) was a United States federal statute enacted on September 24, 1789, during the first session of the First United States Congress. It established the federal judiciary of the United States. Article III, Secti ...

. It originally sat in

Independence Hall Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Fa ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

as the

United States District Court for the District of Pennsylvania The following are former United States district courts, which ceased to exist because they were subdivided into smaller units. With the exception of California, each of these courts initially covered an entire U.S. state, and was subdivided as the ...

, and is now located at the James Byrne Courthouse at 601 Market Street in Philadelphia. There are Eastern District federal courtrooms in

, Lancaster,

Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them: *Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California *Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County *Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

, and Easton. The Court's jurisdiction includes

, as well as Berks, Bucks,

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, Lancaster, Lehigh, Montgomery and Northampton counties. The district is a part of 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 * Easte ...

, and appeals are taken to that Circuit (except for

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

claims and claims against the U.S. government under the

Tucker Act The Tucker Act (March 3, 1887, ch. 359, , ) is a federal statute of the United States by which the United States government has waived its sovereign immunity with respect to certain lawsuits. The Tucker Act may be divided into the "Big" Tucker A ...

, which are appealed to the

Federal Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (in case citations, Fed. Cir. or C.A.F.C.) is a United States court of appeals that has special appellate jurisdiction over certain types of specialized cases in the U.S. federal court ...

). The chief judge for the Eastern Pennsylvania District Court is Juan Ramon Sánchez. The people in the district are represented by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. , the U.S. Attorney is Jacqueline C. Romero.

History

The

was one of the original 13 courts established by the

, , on September 24, 1789.Asbury Dickens, ''A Synoptical Index to the Laws and Treaties of the United States of America'' (1852), p. 388.U.S. District Courts of Pennsylvania, Legislative history
''

Federal Judicial Center The Federal Judicial Center is the education and research agency of the United States federal courts. It was established by in 1967, at the recommendation of the Judicial Conference of the United States. According to , the main areas of respo ...

''. It was subdivided on April 20, 1818, by , into the Eastern and

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Districts to be headquartered in

and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, respectively. Portions of these districts were subsequently subdivided into the Middle District on March 2, 1901, by . At the time of its initial subdivision, presiding judge Richard Peters Jr. was reassigned to only the Eastern District.

Current judges

Vacancies and pending nominations

Former judges

Chief judges

Succession of seats

List of U.S. Attorneys

* William Lewis (1789–1791) *

William Rawle William Rawle (April 28, 1759 – April 12, 1836) was an American lawyer in Philadelphia, who in 1791 was appointed as United States district attorney in Pennsylvania. He was a founder and first president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvani ...

(1791–1799) *

Jared Ingersoll Jared Ingersoll (October 24, 1749 – October 31, 1822) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, and statesman from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress and a signer of the United States Constitution. He se ...

(1800–1801) * Alexander Dallas (1801–1814) *

Charles Jared Ingersoll Charles Jared Ingersoll (October 3, 1782 – May 14, 1862) was an American lawyer, writer and politician who served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district from 1813 to 1815, Pe ...

(1815–1829) *

George M. Dallas George Mifflin Dallas (July 10, 1792 – December 31, 1864) was an American politician and diplomat who served as mayor of Philadelphia from 1828 to 1829, the 11th vice president of the United States from 1845 to 1849, and U.S. Minister to the ...

(1829–1831) *

Henry D. Gilpin Henry Dilworth Gilpin (April 14, 1801 – January 29, 1860) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the 14th Attorney General of the United States under President Martin Van Buren from 1840 to 1841. He served as the 2nd Solicitor of th ...

(1831–1837) *

John M. Read John Meredith Read Sr. (July 21, 1797 – November 29, 1874) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was one of the founders of the Republican Party and chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. ...

(1837–1841) * William M. Meredith (1841–1842) *

Henry M. Watts Henry Miller Watts (October 10, 1805 – November 30, 1890) was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat. Early life Watts was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on October 10, 1805. He was the son of lawyer David Watts (1764–1819), who stud ...

(1842–1845) * Thomas M. Pettit (1845–1849) * John W. Ashmead (1849–1854) * James C. Van Dyke (1854–1857) * George M. Wharton (1857–1860) * George A. Coffey (1861–1864) * Charles Gilpin (1864–1868) * John P. O'Neil (1868–1869) * Aubrey H. Smith (1869–1873) * William McMichael (1873–1875) * John K. Valentine (1875–1888) * John R. Read (1888–1892) * Ellery P. Ingham (1892–1896) * James M. Beck (1896–1900) *

James Buchanan Holland James Buchanan Holland (November 14, 1857 – April 24, 1914) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Education and career Born in Gwynedd Township (now Lower Gwynedd To ...

(1900–1904) * Joseph Whitaker Thompson (1904–1912) * John C. Smartley (1912–1913) * Francis F. Kane (1913–1919) * Charles D. McAvoy (1920–1921) * George W. Coles (1921–1929) * Calvin S. Boyer (1929–1930) * Howard B. Lewis (Acting) (1931) * Edward W. Wells (1931–1933) * Charles D. McAvoy (Second Time) (1933–1937) * Guy K. Bard (Acting) (1937) *

James Cullen Ganey James Cullen Ganey (April 22, 1899 – February 7, 1972) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Ea ...

(1937–1940) * Edward A. Kallick (Acting) (1940) * Gerald A. Gleeson (1940–1953) * Joseph G. Hildenberger (Acting) (1953) *

W. Wilson White William Wilson White Sr. (February 23, 1906 – November 11, 1964) was a prominent attorney in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and served as the first United States Assistant Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights D ...

(1953–1957) * G. Clinton Fogwell, Jr. (Acting) (1957) *

Harold Kenneth Wood Harold Kenneth Wood (March 21, 1906 – December 17, 1972) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Education and career Born in Mount Vernon, New York, Wood received an A ...

(1957–1959) * Joseph Leo McGlynn, Jr. (Acting) (1959) * Walter E. Alessandroni (1959–1961) * Joseph Simon Lord III (1961) *

Drew J. T. O'Keefe Drew J. T. O'Keefe was a U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He originated from South Philadelphia. An alumnus of St. Joseph's College, he received his law degree from Temple University School of Law. Prior to becoming an ass ...

(1961–1969) * Louis C. Bechtle (1969–1972) * Carl Joseph Melone (Acting) (1972) * Robert E. J. Curran (1972–1976) * Jonas Clayton Undercofler III (Acting) (1976) *

David W. Marston David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

(1976–1978) * Robert N. DeLuca (Acting) (1978) * Peter F. Vaira, Jr. (1978–1983) * Edward S. G. Dennis, Jr. (1983–1988) * Michael M. Baylson (1988–1993) * Michael J. Rotko (Acting) (1993) * Michael R. Stiles (1993–2001) * Michael L. Levy (Acting) (2001) *

Pat Meehan Patrick Leo Meehan (born October 20, 1955) is a former American Republican Party politician and federal prosecutor from Pennsylvania who represented parts of Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Berks, and Lancaster counties in the United States Ho ...

(2001–2008) * Laurie Magid (Acting) (2008–2009) * Michael L. Levy (Acting, Second Time) (2009–2010) * Zane David Memeger (2010–2016) * Louis D. Lappen (Acting) (2016–2018) * William M. McSwain (2018–2021) * Jennifer Arbittier Williams (Acting) (2021–2022) * Jacqueline C. Romero (2022–present)

Notes

External links

Official site
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 1818 establishments in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, Eastern District Buildings and structures in Philadelphia Pennsylvania law Government of Philadelphia Allentown, Pennsylvania Reading, Pennsylvania Easton, Pennsylvania Courthouses in Pennsylvania Courts and tribunals established in 1818