Kent A. Jordan

Kent Amos Jordan is a former United States circuit judge who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 2006 until his retirement in 2025. Born in 1957, he was appointed to the Third Circuit by President George W. Bush, a Republican, and confirmed by the Senate in December 2006. Prior to his appellate service, Jordan served as a United States district judge for the District of Delaware and had extensive experience in both private legal practice and federal prosecution.

Early life and legal career

Jordan was born on October 24, 1957, in West Point, New York. He is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served as a missionary in Japan during his younger years, an experience that preceded his formal legal education.

Jordan pursued his undergraduate education at Brigham Young University, where he majored in economics and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1981. He then attended Georgetown University Law Center, one of the nation's prominent law schools, receiving his Juris Doctor in 1984. Following law school, Jordan began his legal career with a federal clerkship, serving from 1984 to 1985 under Judge James L. Latchum of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. This clerkship provided him with early exposure to the federal judiciary in Delaware, a state where he would spend much of his professional career.

After completing his clerkship, Jordan entered private legal practice in Delaware, working from 1985 to 1987. In 1987, he transitioned to public service, joining the United States Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Delaware. In this role, he served as a federal prosecutor for five years, from 1987 to 1992, gaining substantial experience in federal criminal and civil litigation. Following his tenure at the Department of Justice, Jordan returned to private practice in Delaware, where he worked from 1992 to 1997.

During the mid-1990s, Jordan also began his involvement in legal education, serving as an adjunct professor at Widener University School of Law from 1995 to 1996. This teaching experience marked the beginning of what would become a sustained commitment to legal education alongside his other professional responsibilities.

In 1998, Jordan moved into the corporate sector, accepting a position as vice president and general counsel for the Corporation Service Company in Wilmington, Delaware. He held this position until 2002, managing legal affairs for the company and gaining experience in corporate governance and business law. This diverse background—spanning private practice, federal prosecution, legal education, and corporate counsel work—provided Jordan with a broad foundation in multiple areas of law before his appointment to the federal bench.

Federal appellate service

Jordan's federal judicial career began at the district court level. President George W. Bush, a Republican, nominated him to serve on the United States District Court for the District of Delaware on July 25, 2002. The Senate confirmed Jordan by voice vote on November 14, 2002, and he received his commission the following day, on November 15, 2002. He served as a district judge for approximately four years, presiding over cases in Delaware's federal trial court.

Jordan's tenure as a district judge was relatively brief, as he was soon nominated for elevation to the federal appellate bench. On June 28, 2006, President Bush nominated Jordan to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to fill the vacancy created by Judge Jane Richards Roth. The Third Circuit has jurisdiction over appeals from federal district courts in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Virgin Islands, making it one of the geographically significant federal appellate courts.

Jordan's nomination to the Third Circuit came during the final months of the 109th Congress. The Senate confirmed him by a vote of 91 to 0 on December 8, 2006, during what was described as the waning hours of the final lame duck session of that Congress. The overwhelming bipartisan support reflected in the confirmation vote demonstrated broad Senate approval of his qualifications for the appellate bench. Jordan received his commission to the Third Circuit on December 13, 2006, and his service as a district court judge was terminated on December 15, 2006, upon his elevation to the appellate court.

Jordan's first precedential opinion as a Third Circuit judge was published on May 2, 2007, less than five months after he joined the court. He authored the opinion for a unanimous three-judge panel in a case involving ERISA claims. Notably, Judge Roth, whose vacancy Jordan had been appointed to fill, served as a member of the panel for this case, providing a symbolic continuity between the two jurists.

Throughout his tenure on the Third Circuit, Jordan also maintained his commitment to legal education. He served as an adjunct professor at multiple law schools, including the University of Pennsylvania Law School, Vanderbilt University Law School, and Widener University School of Law, teaching courses while simultaneously fulfilling his judicial responsibilities.

Jordan served on the Third Circuit for nearly two decades, retiring from federal judicial service on January 15, 2025, after approximately 18 years on the appellate bench and more than 22 years of total federal judicial service when including his district court tenure.

Jurisprudence and legacy

As a circuit judge on the Third Circuit, Jordan participated in the resolution of numerous appeals spanning the full range of federal law, including matters involving civil rights, criminal law, administrative law, employment law, and commercial litigation. The Third Circuit's jurisdiction over Delaware, a state known as a major center of corporate law due to its incorporation statutes, meant that Jordan frequently encountered complex business and corporate governance issues during his appellate service.

Jordan's background as both a federal prosecutor and a corporate counsel provided him with practical perspectives that informed his judicial work. His experience as an Assistant United States Attorney gave him familiarity with criminal procedure and federal law enforcement, while his time as general counsel for a corporation offered insight into business operations and commercial legal issues. This combination of prosecutorial and corporate experience was relatively distinctive among federal appellate judges and contributed to a well-rounded judicial perspective.

His commitment to legal education, maintained throughout his judicial career through adjunct teaching positions at multiple law schools, demonstrated an ongoing engagement with legal scholarship and the training of future lawyers. Teaching at institutions including Penn Law and Vanderbilt Law while serving as an active circuit judge reflected a dedication to both the practical application and theoretical development of law.

Jordan's service spanned multiple presidential administrations and significant developments in federal law. During his nearly two decades on the Third Circuit, he contributed to the court's jurisprudence across numerous areas of federal law, participating in three-judge panels and occasional en banc proceedings that shaped legal precedent within the circuit. His retirement in January 2025 concluded a substantial career in the federal judiciary that encompassed both trial and appellate experience.