Federal judiciary · U.S. Courts of Appeals
Judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit is one of the thirteen U.S. Courts of Appeals — the intermediate appellate courts of the federal judiciary that sit between the district courts and the Supreme Court of the United States. This page lists every judge of the court The Candidate tracks: those in regular active service, shown first; those who have taken senior status; and former judges whose circuit service has ended. A senior judge is not retired — having met the age-and-service threshold set by statute, a senior judge continues to hear cases on a reduced caseload while opening a seat for a new appointment, so each senior judge below is still a sitting Article III judge. Former judges include those who left the court by elevation to the Supreme Court, resignation, retirement, or death — their circuit service ended, even when the same person continues to serve elsewhere (a sitting Justice's former circuit page never says "Former Justice"). Circuit judges are nominated by the President and confirmed by the United States Senate, and under Article III of the Constitution they hold office during good behavior — in practice, for life, until they resign, are impeached, elevated, or die in office. Unlike senators and representatives, a circuit judge represents no state and belongs to no party while serving; each profile records the President who appointed the judge, the seat they fill, their confirmation and commission dates, and their full span of service, but never assigns the judge a party of their own. Each row links to a sourced page covering the judge's biography, appointment and service record, and the external authority records — the Federal Judicial Center Biographical Directory, Wikipedia, and Wikidata — that back every fact. The full machine-readable roster is published as a versioned JSON dataset for downstream researchers and language models.
- In active service
- 16
- Senior status
- 15
- Currently serving
- 31
- Former judges
- 48
- Court
- www.ca6.uscourts.gov
In active service16
- Karen Nelson MooreActiveActive service · 1995–presentAppointed by Bill Clinton
- Eric L. ClayActiveActive service · 1997–presentAppointed by Bill Clinton
- Jeffrey S. SuttonActiveActive service · 2003–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Richard Allen GriffinActiveActive service · 2005–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Raymond M. KethledgeActiveActive service · 2008–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Amul Roger ThaparActiveActive service · 2017–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- Joan Louise LarsenActiveActive service · 2017–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- John Kenneth BushActiveActive service · 2017–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- John Baylor NalbandianActiveActive service · 2018–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- Chad Andrew ReadlerActiveActive service · 2019–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- Eric Earl MurphyActiveActive service · 2019–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
- Andre Bernard MathisActiveActive service · 2022–presentAppointed by Joe Biden
- Stephanie Dawkins DavisActiveActive service · 2022–presentAppointed by Joe Biden
- Rachel Sarah BloomekatzActiveActive service · 2023–presentAppointed by Joe Biden
- Kevin Gafford RitzActiveActive service · 2024–presentAppointed by Joe Biden
- Whitney Downs HermandorferActiveActive service · 2025–presentAppointed by Donald Trump
Senior status15
- James Leo RyanSeniorSenior status · 1985–presentAppointed by Ronald Reagan
- Alan Eugene NorrisSeniorSenior status · 1986–presentAppointed by Ronald Reagan
- Danny Julian BoggsSeniorSenior status · 1986–presentAppointed by Ronald Reagan
- Richard Fred SuhrheinrichSeniorSenior status · 1990–presentAppointed by George H W Bush
- Alice Moore BatchelderSeniorSenior status · 1991–presentAppointed by George H W Bush
- Eugene Edward Siler Jr.SeniorSenior status · 1991–presentAppointed by George H W Bush
- Martha Craig DaughtreySeniorSenior status · 1993–presentAppointed by Bill Clinton
- Ransey Guy Cole Jr.SeniorSenior status · 1995–presentAppointed by Bill Clinton
- Ronald Lee GilmanSeniorSenior status · 1997–presentAppointed by Bill Clinton
- John M. RogersSeniorSenior status · 2002–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Julia Smith GibbonsSeniorSenior status · 2002–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Deborah L. CookSeniorSenior status · 2003–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- David William McKeagueSeniorSenior status · 2005–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Helene N. WhiteSeniorSenior status · 2008–presentAppointed by George W Bush
- Jane Branstetter StranchSeniorSenior status · 2010–presentAppointed by Barack Obama
Former judges48
- Bernice Bouie DonaldActive service · 2011–2023Appointed by Barack Obama
- Susan Bieke NeilsonActive service · 2005–2006Appointed by George W Bush
- David Aldrich NelsonActive service · 1985–2010Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Ralph B. Guy Jr.Active service · 1985–2026Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Herbert Theodore MilburnActive service · 1984–2016Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Harry Walker WellfordActive service · 1982–2021Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Leroy John Contie Jr.Active service · 1982–2001Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Robert B. KrupanskyActive service · 1982–2004Appointed by Ronald Reagan
- Bailey BrownActive service · 1979–1997Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Boyce Ficklen Martin Jr.Active service · 1979–2013Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Cornelia Groefsema KennedyActive service · 1979–2014Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Nathaniel Raphael JonesActive service · 1979–2002Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Damon Jerome KeithActive service · 1977–2019Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Gilbert Stroud Merritt Jr.Active service · 1977–2022Appointed by Jimmy Carter
- Albert Joseph EngelActive service · 1973–2013Appointed by Richard Nixon
- Pierce LivelyActive service · 1972–2016Appointed by Richard Nixon
- W. Wallace KentActive service · 1970–1973Appointed by Richard Nixon
- William Ernest MillerActive service · 1970–1976Appointed by Richard Nixon
- Henry Luesing BrooksActive service · 1969–1971Appointed by Richard Nixon
- Bertram Thomas CombsActive service · 1967–1970Appointed by Lyndon B Johnson
- John Weld Peck IIActive service · 1966–1993Appointed by Lyndon B Johnson
- Wade Hampton McCree Jr.Active service · 1966–1977Appointed by Lyndon B Johnson
- Anthony Joseph CelebrezzeActive service · 1965–1998Appointed by Lyndon B Johnson
- George Clifton Edwards Jr.Active service · 1963–1995Appointed by John F Kennedy
- Harry PhillipsActive service · 1963–1985Appointed by John F Kennedy
- Clifford Patrick O'SullivanActive service · 1960–1975Appointed by Dwight D Eisenhower
- Lester LeFevre CecilActive service · 1959–1982Appointed by Dwight D Eisenhower
- Paul Charles WeickActive service · 1959–1997Appointed by Dwight D Eisenhower
- Potter StewartActive service · 1954–1958Appointed by Dwight D Eisenhower
- Shackelford Miller Jr.Active service · 1945–1965Appointed by Harry S Truman
- Thomas Francis McAllisterActive service · 1941–1976Appointed by Franklin D Roosevelt
- Herschel Whitfield ArantActive service · 1939–1941Appointed by Franklin D Roosevelt
- Elwood HamiltonActive service · 1938–1945Appointed by Franklin D Roosevelt
- Florence Ellinwood AllenActive service · 1934–1966Appointed by Franklin D Roosevelt
- Charles Casper SimonsActive service · 1932–1964Appointed by Herbert Hoover
- Smith HickenlooperActive service · 1928–1933Appointed by Calvin Coolidge
- Xenophon HicksActive service · 1928–1952Appointed by Calvin Coolidge
- Charles Harwood MoormanActive service · 1925–1938Appointed by Calvin Coolidge
- Maurice H. DonahueActive service · 1919–1928Appointed by Woodrow Wilson
- Arthur Carter DenisonActive service · 1911–1931Appointed by William Howard Taft
- Loyal Edwin KnappenActive service · 1910–1930Appointed by William Howard Taft
- John Wesley WarringtonActive service · 1909–1921Appointed by William Howard Taft
- John Kelvey RichardsActive service · 1903–1909Appointed by Theodore Roosevelt
- Henry Franklin SeverensActive service · 1900–1911Appointed by William Mckinley
- William Rufus DayActive service · 1899–1903Appointed by William Mckinley
- Horace Harmon LurtonActive service · 1893–1909Appointed by Grover Cleveland
- William Howard TaftActive service · 1892–1900Appointed by Benjamin Harrison
- Howell Edmunds JacksonActive service · 1891–1893Appointed by None Assignment
Related on The Candidate
- Federal judiciaryHow the Article III judiciary fits into the federal government.Open
- Supreme Court justicesThe court above the circuits — every sitting and former Justice.Open
- U.S. presidentsThe appointing authority — every president who has named a federal judge.Open
- Federal officesBrowse the federal offices and office holders The Candidate tracks.Open