United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky

The United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky (in case citations, W.D. Ky.) is the federal district court for the western part of the state of Kentucky.

Appeals from the Western District of Kentucky are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction includes the following Kentucky counties: Adair, Allen, Ballard, Barren, Breckinridge, Bullitt, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Casey,  Christian, Clinton, Crittenden, Cumberland, Daviess, Edmonson, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Green,  Hancock, Hardin, Hart, Henderson, Hickman, Hopkins, Jefferson, LaRue, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marion, Marshall, McCracken, McLean, Meade, Metcalfe, Monroe, Muhlenberg, Nelson, Ohio, Oldham, Russell, Simpson, Spencer, Taylor, Todd, Trigg, Union, Warren, Washington, and Webster.

The following counties are in the Louisville Division: Breckinridge, Bullitt, Hardin, Jefferson, LaRue, Marion, Meade,  Nelson, Oldham, Spencer, and Washington.

The following counties are in the Bowling Green Division: Adair, Allen, Barren, Butler, Casey, Clinton, Cumberland, Edmonson, Green, Hart, Logan, Metcalf, Monroe, Russell, Simpson,  Taylor, Todd, and Warren.

The following counties are in the Owensboro Division: Daviess, Grayson, Hancock, Henderson, Hopkins, McLean, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Union, and Webster.

The following counties are in the Paducah Division: Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Livingston, Lyon, McCracken, Marshall, and Trigg.

History
The United States District Court for the District of Kentucky was one of the original 13 courts established by the Judiciary Act of 1789,, on September 24, 1789. At the time, Kentucky was not yet a state, but was within the territory of the state of Virginia. The District was unchanged when Kentucky became a state on June 1, 1792. On February 13, 1801, the Judiciary Act of 1801,, abolished the U.S. district court in Kentucky, but the repeal of this Act restored the District on March 8, 1802,. The District was subdivided into Eastern and Western Districts on February 12, 1901, by.

Meeting places
The court is based in Louisville and also holds sessions in federal courthouses in Bowling Green, Owensboro, and Paducah. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati, Ohio maintains appellate jurisdiction over the district. Its court in Louisville is located at the Gene Snyder U.S. Courthouse.

U.S. Attorneys
The United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Kentucky represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. As of 2021-11-17 the United States attorney is Michael A. Bennett.


 * Ruben D. Hill 1898–1906
 * George Du Relle 1906–14
 * Perry B. Miller 1914–19
 * W. Voris Gregory 1919–22
 * W. Sherman Ball 1922–27
 * Thomas Sparks Jr. 1927–35
 * Bunk Gardner 1935–38
 * Eli H. Brown III 1938–45
 * David C. Walls 1945–53
 * Charles F. Wood 1953–54
 * J. Leonard Walker 1954–59
 * William B. Jones 1959–61
 * William E. Scent 1961–65
 * Boyce F. Martin Jr. 1965
 * Ernest W. Rivers 1965–70
 * John T. Smith 1970
 * George J. Long Jr. 1970–77
 * J. Albert Jones 1977–80
 * John L. Smith 1980–81
 * Alexander T. Taft Jr. 1981
 * Ronald E. Meredith 1981–85
 * Alexander T. Taft Jr. 1985–86
 * Joseph M. Whittle 1986–93
 * W. Michael Troop 1993–99
 * Steven S. Reed 1999-2001
 * Steve Pence 2001–2003
 * David L. Huber 2003–2009
 * David J. Hale 2010–2014
 * John E. Kuhn Jr. 2014-2017
 * Russell Coleman 2017–2021
 * Michael A. Bennett 2021–present