The Judicial Conference of the United States has authorized the appointment of a full-time United States Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania at Pittsburgh and Johnstown. The vacancy for Pittsburgh will occur as of October 17, 2026, upon the retirement of current United States Magistrate Judge Maureen P. Kelly. The vacancy for Johnstown is expected to be filled on or after April 1, 2027.
To be qualified for appointment an applicant must: Be, and have been for at least five years, a member in good standing of the bar of the highest court of a state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Territory of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United States; Have been engaged in the active practice of law for a period of at least five years (with some substitutes authorized); Be competent to perform all the duties of the office, of good moral character, emotionally stable and mature, committed to equal justice under the law, in good health, patient, courteous, and capable of deliberation and decisiveness; Be less than 70 years old; and Not be related to a judge of the district court.
The duties of the position are demanding and wide-ranging and will include, but are not limited to: (1) trial and disposition of civil cases upon consent of the litigants; (2) trial and disposition of misdemeanor cases; (3) conduct of various pretrial matters including motions to dismiss, motions for summary judgment and discovery motions, and evidentiary proceedings on reference from the judges of the District Court; (4) conduct of most preliminary proceedings in criminal cases. The basic authority of a United States Magistrate Judge is specified in 28 U.S.C. § 636.