The United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa (in case citations, S.D. Iowa) has jurisdiction over forty-seven of Iowa's ninety-nine counties. It is subject to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The United States District Court for the District of Iowa, established on March 3, 1845, by 5 Stat. 789, was subdivided into the current Northern and Southern Districts on July 20, 1882, by 22 Stat. 172. Initially, one judge was assigned to each District.
By 1927, a backlog of unresolved cases dating back to 1920 had developed. In October 1927, Judge Martin Joseph Wade announced that he "was through" attempting to try cases requiring more than one day, but urged Congress to create a second judgeship for the Southern District of Iowa. On January 19, 1928, President Calvin Coolidge signed into law a bill that authorized a second judgeship for the District, with the proviso that when the existing judgeship (held by Judge Wade) becomes vacant, it shall not be filled unless authorized by Congress. When the original judgeship became vacant upon Wade's death in 1931, Congress did not act to reauthorize it, leaving the Southern District with a single judgeship. A second judgeship in the Southern District was not reauthorized by Congress until 1979, with the creation of the judgeship first held by Harold Duane Vietor.
In 1962, Congress created a new judgeship that would be shared by the Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa. The shared judgeship was replaced in 1990 when the shared judgeship (then held by Judge Donald E. O'Brien) was assigned entirely to the Northern District, and a third Southern District judgeship (first held by Judge Ronald Earl Longstaff) was authorized.
In 2012, Judge Stephanie M. Rose was the first woman appointed to the bench in the Southern District of Iowa.
It is headquartered at the United States Courthouse in Des Moines, with satellite facilities in Council Bluffs and at the United States Court House in Davenport. As of December 12, 2025, the United States attorney is David Waterman.
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Jurisdiction
The Southern District of Iowa has three court divisions, each covering the following counties:
The Central Division, covering Adair, Adams, Appanoose, Boone, Clarke, Dallas, Davis, Decatur, Greene, Guthrie, Jasper, Jefferson, Keokuk, Lucas, Madison, Mahaska, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Polk, Poweshiek, Ringgold, Story, Taylor, Union, Wapello, Warren and Wayne counties.
The Eastern Division, covering Clinton, Des Moines, Henry, Johnson, Lee, Louisa, Muscatine, Scott, Van Buren, and Washington counties.
The Western Division, covering Audubon, Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie and Shelby counties.
Current judges
As of January 28, 2026:
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.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.
U.S. Attorneys
John S. Runnels 1882-85
Daniel O. Finch 1885-89
Lewis Miles 1889-93
Charles D. Fullen 1893-1902
Claude R. Porter 1914-18
Edwin G. Moon 1918-22
Ralph Pringle 1922-24
Edwin G. Moon 1924
Ross R. Mowry 1924-32
Robert W. Colflesh 1932-34
Edwin G. Moon 1934-39
Cloid I. Level 1939
John K. Valentine 1939-40
Hugh B. McCoy 1940
Maurice F. Donegan 1940-49
William R. Hart 1949-53
Roy L. Stephenson 1953-60
Roy W. Meadows 1960-61
Donald A. Wine 1961-65
Philip T. Riley 1965
Donald M. Statton 1965-67
Jerry E. Williams 1967
James P. Rielly 1967-69
Allen L. Donielson 1969-76
George H. Perry 1976-77