Glenn Leroy Archer, Jr.

Who was Glenn Leroy Archer, Jr.?

Glenn Leroy Archer, Jr. was a senior judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Born in Densmore, Kansas, Archer moved to Topeka, Kansas where he attended public high school. Archer received a B.A. in English literature from Yale University in 1952 and a J.D., with honors, from George Washington University Law School in 1954. He served as a First Lieutenant in the Judge Advocate General's Office of the United States Air Force from 1954 to 1956. He entered private practice in Washington, D.C., as an associate in the law firm of Hamel, Park, McCabe and Saunders from 1956 to 1960 and a partner from 1960 to 1981. Archer served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the United States Department of Justice Tax Division from 1982 to 1984.

On October 16, 1985, Archer was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated by Jack Richard Miller. Archer was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 16, 1985, and received his commission on December 17, 1985. He assumed duties as a Circuit Judge on December 23, 1985. He replaced Judge Helen W. Nies as Chief Judge on March 18, 1994, and served in that capacity until December 24, 1997, when Chief Judge Haldane Robert Mayer replaced him. Archer assumed senior status on December 24, 1997. He died on July 27, 2011.