Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., today announced the appointment of Senior District Judge Thomas F. Hogan as the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.  Judge Hogan has nearly 30 years of federal judicial service.  He was appointed to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in 1982, and he served as chief judge of that court from 2001 until 2008, when he assumed senior status.  Judge Hogan will serve a one-year term as Director, beginning this fall.  He succeeds James C. Duff, who served five years as Director.

       The Director of the Administrative Office is the chief administrative officer of the federal courts.  He serves under the direction of the Judicial Conference of the United States, the principal policy-making body for the federal court system.  The Chief Justice is the presiding officer of the Conference, which is composed of the chief judges of the 13 courts of appeals, a district judge from each of the 12 geographic circuits, and a judge of the Court of International Trade.  The Chief Justice selects the Director.

       In announcing his selection, the Chief Justice noted, “I am delighted that Judge Hogan has agreed to take on this important responsibility.  He is one of our nation’s most distinguished judges.  Judge Hogan will bring extraordinary experience and insight to the position by virtue of his prior service to the judiciary.  In addition to his tenure as chief judge of a district court that hears many issues of national importance, he has served as a member of the Judicial Conference, chair of its executive committee, chair of the Conference’s courtroom technology subcommittee, and a board member of the Federal Judicial Center.  I look forward to working closely with Tom on the many critical issues facing the judiciary.”

       Judge Hogan will be responsible for the management of the Administrative Office, which has approximately 1,000 employees, and for providing administrative support to 2,250 judicial officers and more than 34,000 court employees.  Judge Hogan will serve as liaison for the judicial branch in its relations with Congress, including working with congressional committees to secure the judiciary’s annual appropriation and executing the judiciary’s $6.91 billion-dollar annual budget.

       In accepting this appointment, Judge Hogan stated, “I am deeply honored that the Chief Justice has selected me to be Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.  While there are many challenges facing the Judicial Branch, the Administrative Office has a tradition of excellence in its service to judges, court staff, and the public.  I am committed to continuing this practice while focusing on ways to work more effectively and efficiently in this era of cost containment.”

       Judge Hogan graduated from Georgetown University in 1960, and attended George Washington University’s masters program in American and English literature from 1960 to 1962.  He received a J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1966, where he was the St. Thomas More Fellow.  He was an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center from 1986 to1992, and he was an assistant professor at Potomac School of Law from 1977 to 1979.  Judge Hogan has also been a Master of the Prettyman-Leventhal American Inn of Court, the first specialty inn dealing exclusively with administrative law.  Judge Hogan plans to commence his term as Director on Monday, October 17, 2011.  He will retain his judicial commission and plans to return to his responsibilities as senior judge upon completion of the one-year term.

       Judge Hogan was born in Washington, D.C.  He is married to Dr. Martha L. Wyrick Hogan.  They have one son.