--- title: "Scott Milne Matheson Jr. | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/scott-milne-matheson-jr" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Scott Milne Matheson Jr. U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit · U.S. Circuit Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit - State: National federal courts - Role: U.S. Circuit Judge - Service status: active - 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 Tenth Circuit, 2010-present - professor of law, 1991-2010 - Faculty at the University of Utah’s S.J. Quinney College of Law (1985–2010), including Dean from 1998–2006. - Other roles: Deputy County Attorney for Salt Lake County (1988–1989), visiting professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government (1989–1990), and public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (2006–2007) - U.S. attorney for the District of Utah, 1993-1997 - associate professor of law, 1985-1991 - Visiting associate professor, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, 1989-1990 - Deputy county attorney, Salt Lake County, UT, 1988-1989 - Private practice at Williams & Connolly LLP in Washington, D.C. (1981–1985) - His career reflects a blend of legal practice, academic leadership, and public service, and he is recognized for his work in constitutional law, criminal law, and civil procedure ### Education - Yale University — J.D. (1980) - Yale Law School in, where he was a notes editor for the Yale Law Journal — J.D. (1980) - M.A. in Modern History from Magdalen College, Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar (1977). - Stanford University, winning the Anna Laura Myers Prize for his economics thesis — B.A. (1975) ### Additional information - Matheson was nominated by President Barack Obama on March 3, 2010, to fill the seat vacated by Michael W. McConnell. - The U.S. Senate confirmed him on December 22, 2010, and he received his commission on December 27, 2010. - associate dean for academic affairs, 1990-1993 - Date of birth: 1953-01-01 - The American Bar Association rated him Unanimously Qualified. - As a Tenth Circuit judge, Matheson hears appeals in federal cases within the 10th Circuit’s jurisdiction, which covers parts of the western United States. - His official court profile provides details on case filings, opinions, and clerkship/internship opportunities. - Matheson is the son of former Utah Governor Scott M. Matheson Sr. and the brother of former U.S. Representative Jim Matheson. - Birth place: Salt Lake City, UT ## 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/1393591) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393591) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393591) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2076/scott-milne-matheson-jr/) - [Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2076/scott-milne-matheson-jr/) - [Wikidata: Scott Matheson, Jr.](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7436779) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/scott-milne-matheson-jr", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/scott-milne-matheson-jr", "name": "Scott Milne Matheson Jr. | KnowJudges", "description": "Scott Milne Matheson Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. 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