Need a brief biography of any Federal Judge? The Federal Judges Biographical Database from the Federal Judical Center contains the service record and biographical information for all judges who have served on the U.S. District Courts, U.S. Circuit Courts, U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the Supreme Court since 1789. Simply go to Federal Judges Biographical Database.

You can either browse the database or you can bypass the browsing option and type in the judge’s name you are searching for in the search box. There is also the option of searching the database using specified criteria. Scrolling down the main page you will see a link saying, “To construct research questions regarding groups of judges, use the The Federal Judges Biographical Database. If you click on the link you are given a number of search criteria to choose from including specific courts, court types, nominating president, party of nominating president, nomination date, commission date, retirement from active service date, termination date, reason for termination, gender and race. Simply select your search criteria and a template will be generated where you can plug in your information and run a detailed search.

Here in the Wirtz Labor Library we have a copy of the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary (Call No. KF8700.A19A46 Law Library Reference Shelf). This 2-volume set gives basic biographical information as well as commentary and ratings from attorneys.