Thomas Francis McAllister

Who was Thomas Francis McAllister?

Thomas Francis McAllister was a United States federal judge.

Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, McAllister was a Volunteer in the French Foreign Legion from 1917 to 1918. He received an A.B. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1918 and read law to enter the bar in 1921. He was in private practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan from 1921 to 1937. He was a member of the Michigan State Advisory Liquor Commission in 1933. He was a Democratic candidate for U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan, 1934 in 1936. He was a Special assistant to U.S. attorney general of Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice in 1937. He was a Justice of the Supreme Court of Michigan from 1938 to 1941. He was a member of the Attorney General's Commission on Bankruptcy Administration in 1939.

McAllister was a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. McAllister was nominated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on April 25, 1941, to a seat vacated by Herschel Whitfield Arant. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 19, 1941, and received his commission on May 22, 1941. He served as chief judge from 1959-1961. He assumed senior status on January 1, 1963.