Howard Thomas Markey Howard Thomas Markey ( November 10 , 1920 – May 3 , 2006 ) was an American jurist who served as the first chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit . He is often credited with establishing that court ' s renown and competence in intellectual property law . Judge Markey also is known for being the only person to have served ( as a sitting judge or by designation ) as a judge on all of the United States federal appellate courts . With the abolition of the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals , Judge Markey ' s achievement cannot be repeated . Early life , military and legal career . Markey was born in Chicago , Illinois to Thomas Joseph and Vera Marie ( Dryden ) Markey . He served in the U . S . Army Air Forces during World War II as a test pilot , flying P - 38 s and P - 59 jets in extreme cold - weather . He left the army in 1946 as a major , and became a lieutenant colonel in the U . S . Air Force Reserve . Markey subsequently earned his undergraduate degree and a J . D . in an accelerated one - year program at Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 1949 , and an LL . M . in patent law in 1950 from John Marshall Law School . He returned to active military service in the Korean War , in which he served as a planner of the Korean Airlift . Markey returned to Chicago following the war , specializing his private legal practice in patent law and other areas of intellectual property . He remained in the Air Force Reserve , and served as commander of the Illinois Air National Guard and as deputy commander of the Reserve ' s Tactical Air Command . Markey retired from the Air Force Reserve in 1976 as a major general , having received the Distinguished Service Medal , the Legion of Merit and the Distinguished Flying Cross . He was a lecturer at Loyola University School of Law from 1971 to 1972 . Federal judicial service . Markey was nominated by President Richard Nixon in 1972 to succeed Francis Eugene Worley as chief judge of the U . S . Court of Customs and Patent Appeals . Markey was confirmed by the United States Senate , receiving his commission on June 22 , 1972 . On October 1 , 1982 , that court was merged with the appellate division of the federal Court of Claims to establish the Federal Circuit . Markey was reassigned to the Federal Circuit by operation of law , and continued to serve as chief judge of the new court until 1991 . During his tenure on both courts , and while sitting by designation in the regional circuits , Markey is estimated to have participated in more than 6 , 400 cases , and to have written over 1 , 000 opinions . Following his retirement from the bench , Markey served as the dean of John Marshall Law School , from 1991 until 1994 . In 1997 , Congress renamed the Federal Circuit ' s Washington , D . C . headquarters the Howard T . Markey National Courts Building . Congressman Henry Hyde ( R - IL ) , then - chair of the House Judiciary Committee , said that Markey ' s efforts had established the Federal Circuit as " the world ' s most respected and followed court on matters of intellectual property . " Retirement and death . Markey , who suffered from Parkinson ' s Disease , died on May 3 , 2006 in a nursing home in Hinsdale , Illinois where he lived his last years . Known for his sense of humor , he is said to have asked the nursing home staff to call him " judge " and " general " on alternate days . Markey was buried at Arlington National Cemetery . His wife of 52 years , Elizabeth Pelletier Markey , died in 1994 . They had three sons : Thomas , who died in infancy , Christopher and Jeffrey ; and a daughter , Jennifer .