# United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi (in case citations, N.D. Miss.) is a federal court in the Fifth Circuit with facilities in Aberdeen, Greenville, and Oxford.
Appeals from cases brought in the Northern District of Mississippi are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The United States attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. As of March 1, 2021 the acting United States attorney is Clay Joyner.

## Jurisdiction

The northern district comprises three divisions.
* The Aberdeen Division comprises the counties of Alcorn, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Itawamba, Lee, Lowndes, Monroe, Oktibbeha, Prentiss, Tishomingo, Webster, and Winston. The court for the Aberdeen Division is held at Aberdeen, Ackerman, and Corinth.
* The Oxford Division comprises the counties of Benton, Calhoun, DeSoto, Lafayette, Marshall, Panola, Pontotoc, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tunica, Union, and Yalobusha. The court for the Oxford Division is held at Oxford, Pittsboro, and Pontotoc.
* The Greenville Division comprises the counties of Attala, Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, Grenada, Humphreys, Leflore, Montgomery, Sunflower, and Washington. The court for the Greenville Division is held at Clarksdale, Cleveland, and Greenville.

## Current judges

As of November 1, 2021:
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Term of service | Term of service | Appointed by |
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Active | Chief | Senior | Appointed by |
| 16 | Chief Judge | Debra M. Brown | Greenville | 1963 | 2013–present | 2021–present | — | Obama |
| 15 | District Judge | Sharion Aycock | Aberdeen | 1955 | 2007–present | 2014–2021 | — | G.W. Bush |
| 17 | District Judge | vacant | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 12 | Senior Judge | Glen H. Davidson | Aberdeen | 1941 | 1985–2007 | 2000–2007 | 2007–present | Reagan |
| 14 | Senior Judge | Michael P. Mills | Oxford | 1956 | 2001–2021 | 2007–2014 | 2021–present | G.W. Bush |

## Vacancies and pending nominations

| Seat | Prior judge's duty station | Seat last held by | Vacancy reason | Date of vacancy | Nominee | Date of nomination |
| 3 | Oxford | Michael P. Mills | Senior status | November 1, 2021 | – | – |

## Former judges

| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
| 1 | George Adams | MS | 1784–1844 | 1838 | — | — | Jackson/Operation of law | resignation |
| 2 | Samuel J. Gholson | MS | 1808–1883 | 1839–1861 | — | — | Van Buren | resignation |
| 3 | Robert Andrews Hill | MS | 1811–1900 | 1866–1891 | — | — | A. Johnson | retirement |
| 4 | Henry Clay Niles | MS | 1850–1918 | 1891–1918 | — | — | B. Harrison | death |
| 5 | Edwin R. Holmes | MS | 1878–1961 | 1918–1929 | — | — | Wilson | seat abolished |
| 6 | Elijah Allen Cox | MS | 1887–1974 | 1929–1957 | — | 1957–1974 | Coolidge | death |
| 7 | Claude Feemster Clayton | MS | 1909–1969 | 1958–1967 | 1966–1967 | — | Eisenhower | elevation to 5th Cir. |
| 8 | William Colbert Keady | MS | 1913–1989 | 1968–1983 | 1968–1982 | 1983–1989 | L. Johnson | death |
| 9 | Orma Rinehart Smith | MS | 1904–1982 | 1968–1978 | — | 1978–1982 | L. Johnson | death |
| 10 | Lyonel Thomas Senter Jr. | MS | 1933–2011 | 1979–1998 | 1982–1998 | 1998–2011 | Carter | death |
| 11 | Neal Brooks Biggers Jr. | MS | 1935–2023 | 1984–2000 | 1998–2000 | 2000–2023 | Reagan | death |
| 13 | W. Allen Pepper Jr. | MS | 1941–2012 | 1999–2012 | — | — | Clinton | death |
* ↑ Reassigned from the District of Mississippi
* 1 2 3 4 5 Jointly appointed to the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 10, 1891, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 11, 1892, and received commission the same day

## Chief judges

Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.

## Succession of seats

Seat 1 :
| Seat reassigned from District of Mississippi on June 18, 1838 by 5 Stat. 247 (concurrent with Southern District) ||
| Adams | 1838 |
| Gholson | 1839–1861 |
| Hill | 1866–1891 |
| Niles | 1892–1918 |
| Holmes | 1918–1929 |
| Seat reassigned solely to Southern District on March 1, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1422 ||
Seat 2 :
| Seat established on March 1, 1929 by 45 Stat. 1422 ||||
| Cox | 1929–1957 |
| Clayton | 1958–1967 |
| Smith | 1968–1978 |
| Senter, Jr. | 1979–1998 |
| Pepper, Jr. | 1999–2012 |
| Brown | 2013–present |
Seat 3 :
| Seat established on March 18, 1966 by 80 Stat. 75 ||||
| Keady | 1968–1983 |
| Biggers, Jr. | 1984–2000 |
| Mills | 2001–2021 |
| vacant | 2021–present |
Seat 4 :
| Seat established on July 10, 1984 by 98 Stat. 333 ||||
| Davidson | 1985–2007 |
| Aycock | 2007–present |

## List of U.S. Attorneys

The U.S. Attorney is the chief law enforcement officer for the Northern District of Mississippi.
* Samuel F. Butterworth (1838–1841)
* Oscar F. Bledsoe (1841–1848)
* Andrew K. Blythe (1848–1850)
* Woodson T. Ligon (1850–1853)
* Nathaniel S. Price (1853–1854)
* John A. Orr (1854–1857)
* Flavius J. Lovejoy (1857)
* G. W. Wells (1870)
* Thomas Walton (1876–1878)
* Green C. Chandler (1878–1885)
* Charles B. Howry (1885–1889)
* Henry C. Niles (1889–1891)
* Mack A. Montgomery (1891–1893)
* Andrew F. Fox (1893–1896)
* Chapman L. Anderson (1896–1897)
* Mack A. Montgomery (1897–1905)
* William D. Frazee (1905–1912)
* Lester G. Fant (1912–1914)
* Wilson S. Hill (1914–1921)
* J. L. Roberson (1921)
* Samuel E. Oldham (1921–1925)
* John H. Cook (1925–1929)
* Lester G. Fant (1929–1937)
* George T. Mitchell (1937–1942)
* James O. Day (1942–1945)
* Chester I. Sumners (1945–1951)
* Noel H. Malone (1951–1954)
* Chester L. Sumners (1954)
* Thomas R. Ethridge (1954–1961)
* B. Euple Dozier (1961)
* Hosea M. Ray (1961–1981)
* Glen H. Davidson (1981–1985)
* Robert Q. Whitwell (1985–1991)
* Sam J. Beckett (1991-1998)
* Walter K. Locke (1998-2010)
* Peter A. O'Pry (2010-2014)
* Josiah M. Alden (2014-2021)
* W. Clay Joyner (2021-Present)