---
title: "Raymond L Finch | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/raymond-l-finch-9989"
page_type: "judge_profile"
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---

# Raymond L Finch

District Court of the Virgin Islands · Chief U.S. District Judge

## Profile

- Court: District Court of the Virgin Islands
- State: U.S. Virgin Islands
- Role: Chief U.S. District Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-06-30

## Biography

### Professional career

- Chief Judge, District Court, Virgin Islands, 1994-present
- Raymond Lawrence Finch (1940–2023) was a distinguished American judge who served on the District Court of the Virgin Islands for over two decades, rising to Chief Judge and later Senior Judge, and is remembered as a “bastion of integrity” and a dedicated public servant
- He held the role of a law clerk to Governors Alexander Farrelly and Antonio L. Joseph, and as a judge advocate in the U.S. Army in Vietnam (1966–1969), earning a Bronze Star Medal
- Law clerk to Judges Alexander A. Farrelly and Antoine L. Joseph, Municipal Court of the Virgin Islands

### Education

- Law degree — Howard University School of Law — 1965
- B.A. in Political Science from Howard University in 1962 and an LL.B. in 1965.

### Additional information

- Judge Finch passed away on February 23, 2023, at age 82.
- He assumed senior status in 2008 and retired from active service in 2018.
- In 1994, President Bill Clinton nominated Finch to the U.S. District Court of the Virgin Islands, where he served from 1994 to 2018.
- Chief Judge from 1999 to 2005, reappointed in 2004 by President George W. Bush.
- In 1976, Governor Cyril King appointed him to the Municipal Court (later the Territorial Court), serving until 1994.
- Instructor, University of the Virgin Islands / American Banking Association; 1965-1978
- Became partner in 1971.
- Attorney; later partner, Hodge and Sheen / Hodge, Sheen, Finch and Ross; from 1969
- First Lieutenant / Captain, United States Army; 1966-1969
- Born October 4, 1940 in Christiansted, St. Croix, to Wilfred C. and Beryl Finch, Raymond graduated from Christiansted High School in 1958.
- After returning to the Virgin Islands, Finch joined the law firm Hodge & Sheen, later becoming a partner in Hodge, Sheen, Finch & Ross.
- Tributes from governors, senators, and colleagues highlighted his decades of service, integrity, and deep connection to the Virgin Islands community.

## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9989/raymond-l-finch/)
- [Official roster](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9989/raymond-l-finch/)
- [U.S. District Court for the District of Virgin Islands current judicial profile](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9989/raymond-l-finch/)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9989/raymond-l-finch/)
- [District Court of the Virgin Islands memorial press release: Raymond L. Finch](https://www.vid.uscourts.gov/sites/vid/files/Amended%20PressReleaseRaymondLFinch.pdf)

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## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [District Court of the Virgin Islands — electronic devices](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-c4237c8d511a3a2a0baabd05) — Federal District Court facilities only; March 13, 2015 dated order and all its exceptions apply. Not territorial Supreme/Superior Courts; later orders not exhaustively certified. Shared baseline only, not a judge-specific preference or complete local rules inventory. Apply source exceptions, case-type limits, later amendments and case orders. [Official source](https://www.vid.uscourts.gov/sites/vid/files/general-ordes/VID_Electronic_Devices_Policy_Order_031315.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.