Jackson L. Kiser
How Judge Kiser rules, drawn from 25 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Judge Kiser no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled here.
About Judge Kiser
Jackson L. Kiser was a judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia. Appointed by President Ronald Reagan, Judge Kiser received a commission on December 3, 1981. Judge Kiser assumed senior status on April 30, 1997 and served until death on October 20, 2020.
How Judge Kiser decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
Kiser entered declaratory judgment when threatened litigation was real and immediate and an early ruling would avoid unnecessary proceedings.
“entry of declaratory judgment at this juncture would eliminate unnecessary judicial involvement.”
Procedural preferences
Kiser declined to compel arbitration after finding the parties’ arbitration clause had expired with the underlying agreement.
“I may not force the plaintiffs to arbitrate a dispute when they have not agreed to arbitration.”
Cautions
Kiser dismissed an environmental claim that did not plead a release or threatened release and resulting response costs.
“there is not one word in the Amended Complaint about expenses from release or threatened release of any substance into the environment.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“it is hereby ADJUDGED and ORDERED that the defendant’s motion is GRANTED. This action is DISMISSED with prejudice.”
“For the reasons stated above, the decision of the Bankruptcy Court is reversed as to its holding that 26 I.R.C. § 4980 constitutes a penalty for purposes of priority under 11 U.S.C. § 507(a)(7)(E).”
“The defendants’ subsequent motion for summary judgment on Counts I and IV is GRANTED; and”
“Accordingly I find this court lacks jurisdiction to hear this case and it shall be remanded to the Circuit Court for the City of Roanoke.”
“Summary judgment will be granted to the Defendant.”
“Therefore, the decision of the Bankruptcy Court will be reversed and the case remanded to the Bankruptcy Court to determine the appropriate fee.”
“For the reasons stated above, I conclude that petitioner’s petition for a writ of habe-as corpus must be denied.”
“it is hereby ADJUDGED and ORDERED that the decision of the bankruptcy court is REVERSED and this action is REMANDED to the bankruptcy court.”
“the decision of the Secretary of Health and Human Services is affirmed and summary judgment is hereby entered for the Defendant.”
“Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for lack of jurisdiction is GRANTED.”
“Defendants’ Motion for Sanctions is DENIED.”
“I will grant Golden West's motion for summary judgment and deny FT's motion for summary judgment.”
“Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment with respect to Count III of its complaint is hereby GRANTED”
“It has cited no authority for this request, and the statutes do not provide for such an award. This request shall be denied.”
“All pending discovery motions in the above-captioned case are hereby DISMISSED AS MOOT.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
The fixed historical sample is heavily concentrated in federal railroad-employment matters and also includes an asbestos product-liability matter; three matters lack a retained nature-of-suit label. It is not representative of Kiser’s full tenure.
Pending matters in the official report
Judge Kiser was last listed in the Civil Justice Reform Act report as of March 31, 2021.
| Motions pending more than six months | 0 |
| Bench trials submitted more than six months | 0 |
| Bankruptcy appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Social Security appeals pending more than six months | 5 |
| Civil cases pending more than three years | 0 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2020 | 0 | 0 |
A snapshot on that date: matters listed may since have been decided or reassigned. A motion referred to a magistrate judge is counted for both judges. Motions in multidistrict litigation, section 2255 cases and Social Security appeals are not counted, and a very large three-year count is generally a multidistrict docket. Source: Appendix A of the report (PDF); about the report.
A historical record
Judge Kiser no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled here. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.