Michael F. Urbanski

Michael Francis Urbanski (born November 1, 1956) is a senior United States district judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia and a former United States magistrate judge of the same court.

Early life and education
Born in Livorno, Italy, where his father was stationed in the U.S. Army, Urbanski attended Denbigh High School in Newport News, Virginia. Urbanski earned an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1978 from The College of William & Mary and a Juris Doctor in 1981 from the University of Virginia School of Law.

From 1981 until 1982, Urbanski served as a law clerk to Judge James Clinton Turk of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia.

Career
From 1982 until 1984, Urbanski served as an associate in Washington, D.C. for the law firm Vinson & Elkins. From 1984 until 2004, practiced with the Woods Rogers law firm in Roanoke, Virginia, serving first as an associate from 1984 until 1988, and then as a principal from 1989 until 2004.

Federal judicial service
In 2004, Urbanski was selected by the judges on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia to be a United States magistrate judge.

On December 1, 2010, President Barack Obama nominated Urbanski to a vacant seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia that had been created by the decision by Judge Norman K. Moon to assume senior status in July 2010. The Senate Judiciary Committee reported Urbanski's nomination out of committee on March 10, 2011. The United States Senate confirmed him on May 12, 2011 by a 94–0 vote. He received his judicial commission on May 13, 2011. He became chief judge on July 3, 2017 and served until July 4, 2024.

In July 2023, Urbanski gave a one-year notice that he would be taking senior status. Virginia's senators recommended Jasmine Yoon for Urbanski's position, and President Joe Biden nominated her in January 2024. She was confirmed in March 2024. Urbanski assumed senior status on July 4, 2024.