Bernard Thomas Moynahan Jr.

Bernard Thomas Moynahan Jr. (December 29, 1918 – September 30, 1999) was a United States federal judge.

Born in Akron, Ohio, Moynahan received an A.B. from the University of Kentucky in 1935, before his 17th birthday, and an LL.B. from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 1938, before his 20th birthday. He was in private practice in Lexington, Kentucky from 1938 to 1939, and in Nicholasville, Kentucky from 1940 to 1942. He served in the United States Army as an Air Corps First Lieutenant during World War II, from 1942 to 1945. He was a County attorney of Jessamine County, Kentucky from 1946 to 1954, returning to private practice in Nicholasville, Kentucky from 1954 to 1961. He was the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky from 1961 to 1963.

On September 16, 1963, Moynahan was nominated by President John F. Kennedy to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky vacated by Hiram Church Ford. Moynahan was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 4, 1963, and received his commission on November 8, 1963. He served as chief judge from 1969 to 1984, assuming senior status on September 30, 1984. Moynahan served in that capacity until his death, in 1999, in Lexington, Kentucky.

Sources

• Bernard Thomas Moynahan Jr. at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.

“At 12:00 a.m. on September 30, 1984, plaintiff left the Bench, retiring from active status as a United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Kentucky.” Moynahan v. United States, 620 F. Supp. 277, 279 (E.D. Ky. 1985)(confirming that " Congress, whatever its reasons, conferred on retired “rule of 80” judges the privilege of maintaining their life insurance coverage without diminution. Accordingly, summary judgment on this issue is granted in favor of plaintiff [Judge Moynahan].").