Thomas Edward Johnston (born September 8, 1967) is the Chief United States district judge of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia The United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia (in case citations, S.D. W. Va.) is a federal court in the Fourth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ...

Education and career

Born in Charleston, West Virginia, Johnston received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree from

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State Coll ...

in 1989 and a Juris Doctor from

West Virginia University College of Law The West Virginia University College of Law is the professional school for the study of law at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. The law school was established in 1878 as the first professional school in the s ...

in 1992. He was a law clerk for Judge Frederick Pfarr Stamp Jr. of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia The United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia (in case citations, N.D. W. Va.) is a federal court in the Fourth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ...

from 1992 to 1994. He was in private practice in Wheeling, West Virginia, from 1994 to 2001. He was the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the Northern District of West Virginia from 2001 to 2006.

Federal judicial service

Johnston is a United States District Judge of the

. Johnston was nominated by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

on September 28, 2005, to a seat vacated by Charles Harold Haden II. 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 March 6, 2006, and received his commission on April 17, 2006. He became Chief Judge on September 5, 2017.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnston, Thomas E. 1967 births Living people Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia Lawyers from Charleston, West Virginia United States Attorneys for the Northern District of West Virginia United States district court judges appointed by George W. Bush West Virginia University alumni West Virginia University College of Law alumni 21st-century American judges