# United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma (in case citations, E.D. Okla. or E.D. Ok.) is a federal court in the Tenth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The District was established on June 16, 1906, and became operational on November 16, 1907, with Oklahoma achieving statehood.
The court's jurisdiction comprises the following counties: Adair, Atoka, Bryan, Carter, Cherokee, Choctaw, Coal, Haskell, Hughes, Johnston, Latimer, LeFlore, Love, Marshall, McCurtain, McIntosh, Murray, Muskogee, Okfuskee, Okmulgee, Pittsburg, Pontotoc, Pushmataha, Seminole, Sequoyah, and Wagoner.
The court is housed in the Ed Edmondson U.S. Courthouse in Muskogee.
The United States Attorney's Office of the Eastern District of Oklahoma represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. As of December 26, 2021 the interim United States attorney for the district is Christopher Wilson.

## History

Judge Frank Howell Seay, appointed to the court by President Jimmy Carter in 1979, was the first Native American (Seminole) appointed to any U.S. district court.

## Current judges

As of May 27, 2020:
| # | 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 |
| 17 | Chief Judge | Ronald A. White | Muskogee | 1961 | 2003–present | 2017–present | — | G.W. Bush |
| 18 | District Judge | John F. Heil III | Muskogee | 1968 | 2020–present | — | — | Trump |
| 13 | Senior Judge | Frank Howell Seay | inactive | 1938 | 1979–2003 | 1980–1996 | 2003–present | Carter |
| 16 | Senior Judge | James H. Payne | inactive | 1941 | 2001–2017 | 2002–2017 | 2017–present | G.W. Bush |
* 1 2 Jointly appointed to the Eastern, Northern, and Western Districts of Oklahoma.

## Vacancies and pending nominations

| Seat | Prior judge's duty station | Seat last held by | Vacancy reason | Date of vacancy | Nominee | Date of nomination |
| 1 | Muskogee | Ronald A. White | Senior status | January 27, 2026 | – | – |

## Former judges

| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
| 1 | Ralph E. Campbell | OK | 1867–1921 | 1907–1918 | — | — | T. Roosevelt | resignation |
| 2 | Robert L. Williams | OK | 1868–1948 | 1919–1937 | — | — | Wilson | elevation to 10th Cir. |
| 3 | Franklin Elmore Kennamer | OK | 1879–1960 | 1924–1925 | — | — | Coolidge | reassignment to N.D. Okla. |
| 4 | Alfred P. Murrah | OK | 1904–1975 | 1937–1940 | — | — | F. Roosevelt | elevation to 10th Cir. |
| 5 | Eugene Rice | OK | 1891–1967 | 1937–1963 | 1949–1963 | 1963–1967 | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 6 | Bower Slack Broaddus | OK | 1888–1949 | 1940–1949 | — | — | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 7 | William Robert Wallace | OK | 1886–1960 | 1950–1960 | — | — | Truman | death |
| 8 | Luther L. Bohanon | OK | 1902–2003 | 1961–1974 | — | 1974–2003 | Kennedy | death |
| 9 | Frederick Alvin Daugherty | OK | 1914–2006 | 1961–1982 | 1973–1975 | 1982–2006 | Kennedy | death |
| 10 | Orville Edwin Langley | OK | 1908–1973 | 1965–1973 | 1965–1973 | — | L. Johnson | death |
| 11 | Joseph Wilson Morris | OK | 1922–2021 | 1974–1978 | 1975–1978 | — | Nixon | resignation |
| 12 | H. Dale Cook | OK | 1924–2008 | 1974–1992 | — | 1992–2008 | Ford | death |
| 14 | David Lynn Russell | OK | 1942–present | 1981–1990 | — | — | Reagan | seat abolished |
| 15 | Michael Burrage | OK | 1950–present | 1994–2001 | 1996–2001 | — | Clinton | resignation |
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 8, 1907, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 13, 1908, and received commission the same day.
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Jointly appointed to the Eastern, Northern, and Western Districts of Oklahoma.
* ↑ Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 15, 1962, confirmed by the Senate on February 7, 1962, and received commission on February 17, 1962.

## 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 established on November 16, 1907 by 34 Stat. 267 ||||
| Campbell | 1908–1918 |
| Williams | 1919–1937 |
| Rice | 1937–1963 |
| Langley | 1965–1973 |
| Morris | 1974–1978 |
| Seay | 1979–2003 |
| White | 2003–present |
Seat 2 :
| Seat established on September 14, 1922 by 42 Stat. 837 (temporary) ||
| Kennamer | 1924–1925 |
| Seat reassigned to Northern District and made permanent on February 16, 1925 by 43 Stat. 945 ||
Seat 3 :
| Seat established on June 22, 1936 by 49 Stat. 1804 (concurrent with Northern and Western Districts) ||||
| Murrah | 1937–1940 |
| Broaddus | 1940–1949 |
| Wallace | 1950–1960 |
| Bohanon | 1961–1974 |
| Cook | 1974–1992 |
| Burrage | 1994–2001 |
| Payne | 2001–2017 |
| Heil III | 2020–present |
Seat 4 :
| Seat established on May 19, 1961 by 75 Stat. 80 (concurrent with Northern and Western Districts) ||
| Daugherty | 1962–1982 |
| Russell | 1981–1990 |
| Seat reassigned solely to Western District on December 1, 1990 by 104 Stat. 5089 ||