{ "id": "epys0acw9w", "slug": "david-b-hornby", "title": "David B. Hornby", "updated": "2026-09-29", "topic_path": [ { "id": "society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society" }, { "id": "society.law", "label": "Law and justice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law" }, { "id": "society.law.practice", "label": "Courts and legal practice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people", "label": "Legal biographies", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us", "label": "United States judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal", "label": "US federal judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3", "label": "Article III judges (district and appellate)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges", "label": "United States district court judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges" }, { "id": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h", "label": "Surnames H", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h", "label": "United States · 2021 and later: Surnames H", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021", "label": "United States · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society", "label": "Society and history", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law", "label": "Law and justice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice", "label": "Courts and legal practice", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people", "label": "Legal biographies", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us", "label": "United States judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal", "label": "US federal judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges", "label": "United States district court judges", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h", "label": "Surnames H", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h" } ] } ], "excerpt": "David B. Hornby, also known as David Brock Hornby, is an American jurist and senior judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine, appointed by George H.W. Bush in 1990.", "snippet": "David B. Hornby, also known as David Brock Hornby, is an American jurist and senior judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine, appointed by George H.W. Bush in 1990.", "node": "society.law.practice.people.people.judges.us.federal.article3.district-judges.alpha-h", "markdown": "# David B. Hornby\n\nDavid Brock Hornby (born 1944) is an American jurist serving as a senior judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maine since 2010.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He was appointed to the court by President George H.W. Bush in 1990 and served as its chief judge from 1996 to 2003.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He took inactive senior status in 2022.[2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\n| Fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Court | U.S. District Court for the District of Maine[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n| Appointed by | George H.W. Bush[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n| Confirmed | April 27, 1990, by voice vote[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n| Senior status | May 1, 2010[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n| Born | 1944 in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n| Education | B.A., University of Western Ontario, 1965; J.D., Harvard Law School, 1969[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) |\n\n## Early life and education\n\nHornby was born in 1944 in [Brandon, Manitoba](https://www.edgepedia.org/brandon-manitoba), Canada.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He received a B.A. from the [University of Western Ontario](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-western-ontario) in 1965 and a J.D. from [Harvard Law School](https://www.edgepedia.org/harvard-law-school) in 1969.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He is a naturalized American citizen, becoming a citizen in 1973.[2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\n## Legal career\n\nHornby served as a law clerk to Judge John Minor Wisdom of the [United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-court-of-appeals-for-the-fifth-circuit) from 1969 to 1970.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He was an associate professor of law at the University of Virginia School of Law from 1970 to 1974, where he was described by the court's official announcement as the youngest person at that point to achieve tenure.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) • [2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\nFrom 1974 to 1982, Hornby practiced law in [Portland, Maine](https://www.edgepedia.org/portland-maine), at the firm Perkins, Thompson, Hinckley & Keddy, where he became a partner.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) • [2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf) In 1982, Judge Edward Thaxter Gignoux appointed him the first full-time United States Magistrate Judge for the District of Maine, serving in Bangor and Portland from 1982 to 1988.[2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf) • [3](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/magistrate-judges) In 1988, Governor John R. McKernan, Jr. appointed him an associate justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, where he served until 1990.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) • [2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\n## Federal judicial service\n\nPresident George H.W. Bush nominated Hornby to the United States District Court for the District of Maine on March 6, 1990.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He was confirmed by voice vote on April 27, 1990, and received his commission on April 30, 1990.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He served as chief judge of the court from 1996 to 2003.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He was a member of the [Judicial Conference of the United States](https://www.edgepedia.org/judicial-conference-of-the-united-states) from 2000 to 2003.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) He assumed senior status on May 1, 2010, maintaining a full caseload as a senior judge.[1](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406) • [2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf) On February 28, 2022, he took inactive senior status after thirty-two years as a district judge and forty years of federal judicial service.[2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\n## Notable cases\n\nIn 2011, Hornby published an article in the Green Bag, \"Speaking in Sentences,\" examining how federal sentencing hearings are conducted.[4](https://greenbag.org/v14n2/v14n2_articles_hornby.pdf) He wrote that sentencing proceedings are \"fundamentally oral,\" and that \"As a judge, I want desperately to hear defendants speak.\"[4](https://greenbag.org/v14n2/v14n2_articles_hornby.pdf) The article discussed the role of allocution, the statements of victims and family members, and the screening responsibilities of defense lawyers in sentencing hearings.[4](https://greenbag.org/v14n2/v14n2_articles_hornby.pdf)\n\nHornby is the author of the ongoing series Fables in Law, published by the Green Bag, and chaired the U.S. Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration. He has also served as a member of the National Academies' Standing Committee on Science, Technology, and Law. In 2009, the [American Judicature Society](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-judicature-society) awarded him the Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award.[2](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges: David Brock Hornby](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382406)\n2. [D. Brock Hornby Takes Inactive Senior Status](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/sites/med/files/Judge-Hornby-Inactive-Senior-Status-Announcement.pdf)\n3. [Magistrate Judges, District of Maine](https://www.med.uscourts.gov/magistrate-judges)\n4. [D. Brock Hornby, Speaking in Sentences, Green Bag](https://greenbag.org/v14n2/v14n2_articles_hornby.pdf)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Law and justice › Courts and legal practice › Legal biographies › United States judges › US federal judges › Article III judges (district and appellate) › United States district court judges › Surnames H*\n\n*Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Sep 29, 2026 · Last review: Sep 29, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"David B. Hornby\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[David B. Hornby](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"David B. Hornby\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/david-b-hornby. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "David B." }