--- title: "Claude M. Hilton | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Claude M. Hilton U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia - State: Virginia - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC): Appointed by Chief Justice William Rehnquist in May 2000; served until May 18, 2007 - Judge, District Court, E.D. Virginia, 1985-2005 - Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1985 and elevated to senior status on December 31, 2005 - U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia: Appointed May 15, 1985; confirmed by the Senate on July 10, 1985. held the role of Chief Judge from 1997 to 2004 - Commissioner in chancery, Virginia Circuit Court, Arlington County, 1976-1985 - Commonwealth’s Attorney, Arlington County (1974–1975) - Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, Arlington County, VA (1967–1968) ### Education - Washington College of Law — J.D. (1966) - American University — J.D. (1966) - Ohio State University — B.S. (1963) ### Additional information - Current status: As of late 2025, Hilton appears inactive in judicial assignments. - Hilton handled over 9,300 district court cases from 1985–2025, with a median case resolution time of about 140 days. - Assumed senior status December 31, 2005. - Private practice, Arlington, VA, 1976-1985 - Private practice, Arlington, Virginia, 1968-1973, 1976-1985 - Commonwealth's attorney, Virginia, 1974-1975 - Private practice, Arlington, VA, 1968-1973 - Assistant commonwealth's attorney, Arlington, Virginia, 1967-1968 - Born December 8, 1940, Scott County, Virginia. - Date of birth: 1940-01-01 - Of 555 appellate decisions reviewed, 468 were affirmed. - City of Alexandria among the most cited. - He authored 117 published opinions, with International Ass’n of Fire Fighters, Local 2141 v. - Raised on his family’s farm in Virginia, later moving to Dayton, Ohio, where he held a position as a men’s clothier clerk while studying. - He is married to Joretta Cabaniss. - Birth place: Scott County, VA ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382186) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382186) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382186) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1466/claude-m-hilton/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1466/claude-m-hilton/) - [Judge Claude M. Hilton](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1382186) - [Wikidata: Claude M. Hilton](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5128944) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton", "name": "Claude M. Hilton | KnowJudges", "description": "Claude M. Hilton, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-09", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton#judge", "name": "Claude M. 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Hilton", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/claude-m-hilton" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 22 | 1 | Not available | 1 | | 2y | 299 | 179 | 4 | 179 | | 5y | 873 | 728 | 4.7 | 728 | | 10y | 2067 | 1911 | 4.9 | 1911 | Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/ ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.