United States District Court for the District of Kansas
United States federal district court of Kansas
The United States District Court for the District of Kansas (in case citations, D. Kan.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Kansas. The Court operates out of the Robert J. Dole United States Courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas, the Frank Carlson Federal Building in Topeka, and the United States Courthouse in Wichita. The District of Kansas was created in 1861, replacing the territorial court that preceded it, and President Abraham Lincoln appointed Archibald Williams as the Court's first judge.
Appeals from the District of Kansas are made to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
As of July 31, 2025 the United States attorney is Ryan Kriegshauser. On March 12, 2015, Ronald L. Miller, most recently police chief of Topeka, Kansas, was confirmed as U.S. Marshal.
The clerk of court is Skyler B. O'Hara, who is located in Topeka.
Current judges
As of June 18, 2026:
Former judges
Chief judges
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “United States District Court for the District of Kansas” as united States federal district court of Kansas. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as united States federal district court of Kansas. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7889773. Authority coordinates are 39.117, -94.622. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1861, 2025, 2015 and 2026.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “United States District Court for the District of Kansas”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow United States District Court for the District of Kansas primary sources, United States District Court for the District of Kansas archive and United research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “United States District Court for the District of Kansas”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “United States District Court for the District of Kansas” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.