--- title: "Solomon Oliver Jr. | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/solomon-oliver-jr" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Solomon Oliver Jr. U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio - State: Ohio - 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 - Judge, District Court, N.D. Ohio, 1994-present - Assistant U.S. attorney, Northern District of Ohio, 1976-1985; chief, Civil Division, 1978-1982; chief, Appellate Division, 1982; special assistant U.S. attorney, 1982-1985 - Following his clerkship, he joined the U.S. Department of Justice as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, eventually becoming chief of the Civil Division in 1978 and chief of the Appellate Division in 1982 - Law clerk, Hon. William Hastie, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1975-1976 - He then clerked for Judge William H. Hastie of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1975 to 1976, gaining mentorship from a pioneering African-American jurist. - After law school, Oliver held the role of an assistant professor of political science at the College of Wooster from 1972 to 1975. ### Education - Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and political science from the College of Wooster in 1969, a Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law in 1972, and a Master of Arts in political science from Case Western Reserve University in 1974 ### Additional information - chief, Appellate Division, 1982-present - He held the role of Chief Judge from 2010 to 2017 and assumed senior status on February 15, 2021. - Member, Judicial Conference of the United States, 2009-2010 - On March 9, 1994, President Bill Clinton nominated Oliver to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, filling the seat vacated by Alice M. Batchelder. - received his commission on May 9, 1994. - He later held the role of associate dean for faculty and administration from 1991 to 1994. - Private practice, Wooster, OH, 1982-1994 - Private practice, Wooster, Ohio, 1982-1994 - Oliver transitioned to academia in 1982, joining Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University as a professor of law, teaching civil procedure, federal jurisdiction, and trial advocacy. - Date of birth: 1947-01-01 - He also held leadership roles in the American Bar Association, including chairing the Section on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar - Birth place: Bessemer, AL - Growing up in the segregated South, he attended racially segregated public schools and was inspired by the civil rights movement to pursue a career in law ## 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 ### presentation procedure Scope: courtwide Courtwide presentation-related guidance applies to this judge. Evidence excerpt: Exhibits: If demonstrative evidence such as models or sketches are to be used at trial, counsel shall exchange them no later than two (2) days prior to the date of trial. All exhibits must be marked before trial in accordance with Local Rule 23.2. [SO-CriminalPretrialOrder.PDF](https://www.ohnd.uscourts.gov/sites/ohnd/files/SO-CriminalPretrialOrder.PDF) Source checked: 2026-07-24 ### 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/1385966) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1385966) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1385966) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2468/solomon-oliver-jr/) - [SO-CriminalPretrialOrder.PDF](https://www.ohnd.uscourts.gov/sites/ohnd/files/SO-CriminalPretrialOrder.PDF) - [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/2468/solomon-oliver-jr/) - [Judge Solomon Oliver Jr.](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1385966) - [Wikidata: Solomon Oliver Jr.](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7558721) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/solomon-oliver-jr", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/solomon-oliver-jr", "name": "Solomon Oliver Jr. | KnowJudges", "description": "Solomon Oliver Jr., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. 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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.