---
title: "James L. Dennis | KnowJudges"
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# James L. Dennis

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · U.S. Circuit Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- State: National federal courts
- Role: U.S. Circuit Judge
- Service status: senior
- Last verified: 2026-07-25

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge, Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 1995-present
- He became a senior judge on the Fifth Circuit after decades of service and took inactive senior status on February 23, 2026.
- Associate justice, Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1975-1995
- Judge, Louisiana Court of Appeal, Second Judicial Circuit, 1974-1975
- Judge, Louisiana District Court, Fourth Judicial District, 1972-1974
- Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

### Education

- B.A., Louisiana Tech University (1959) J.D., LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center (1962) LL.M., University of Virginia School of Law (1984)
- Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College — J.D.

### Additional information

- prof, 1996-1996
- Confirmed September 28, 1995; received commission October 2, 1995.
- Judge, 1976-1976
- Practitioner, 1974-1974
- legis, 1974-1974
- Practitioner, 1973-1973
- legis, 1973-1973
- State representative, Louisiana, 1968-1972
- Private practice, Monroe, LA, 1962-1972
- U.S. Army, 1955–1957.
- Born: January 9, 1936, Monroe, Louisiana.
- Date of birth: 1936-01-09
- American jurist with a long career in Louisiana state courts and the federal judiciary.
- Neville High School
- Birth place: Monroe, LA

## 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

### appellate oral argument

Scope: courtwide

In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation.

Evidence excerpt: Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessary

[Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1379981)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1379981)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1379981)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/858/james-l-dennis/)
- [Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure)
- [Federal Judicial Center — Biographical Directory of Federal Judges](https://www.fjc.gov/sites/default/files/history/judges.csv)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/858/james-l-dennis/)
- [Wikidata: James L. Dennis](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6137544)

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