{{Short description|American judge}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Walter Early Craig | honorific_suffix = | image = | alt = | caption = | office = Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona | term_start = October 1, 1979 | term_end = June 29, 1986 | office1 = Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona | term_start1 = 1973 | term_end1 = 1979 | predecessor1 = James Augustine Walsh | successor1 = Charles Andrew Muecke | office2 = Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona | term_start2 = October 2, 1963 | term_end2 = October 1, 1979 | nominator2 = | appointer2 = John F. Kennedy | predecessor2 = Arthur Marshall Davis | successor2 = Charles Leach Hardy | pronunciation = | birth_name = Walter Early Craig | birth_date = {{Birth date|1909|05|26}} | birth_place = Oakland, California | death_date = {{Death date and age|1986|06|29|1909|05|26}} | death_place = Phoenix, Arizona | death_cause = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = | citizenship = | party = | other_party = | height = | spouse = | partner = | relations = | children = | parents = | mother = | father = | relatives = | education = Stanford University (B.A.)<br>Stanford Law School (LL.B.) | alma_mater = | occupation = | profession = | known_for = | salary = | net_worth = | cabinet = | committees = | portfolio = | awards = | signature = | signature_alt = | website = <!--Embedded templates / Footnotes--> | footnotes = }}
'''Walter Early Craig''' (May 26, 1909 – June 29, 1986) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona.
==Education and career==
Born in Oakland, California, Craig received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University in 1931 and a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School in 1934. He was a lawyer for the Home Owners' Loan Corporation in San Francisco, California from 1934 to 1936, and was in private practice in Phoenix, Arizona from 1936 to 1964 as a partner at the law firm Fennemore Craig.<ref>{{cite web |title=History |url=https://www.fennemorelaw.com/about-us/history/ |website=Fennemore Craig |publisher=Fennemore Craig P.C. |access-date=24 May 2024}}</ref> His time in the private practice of law was interrupted by service in the United States Navy during World War II.<ref name="auto">{{FJC Bio|531|nid=1379611|name=Walter Early Craig<!--(1909–1986)-->}}</ref>
While in private practice Craig served as president of the State Bar of Arizona during 1951-1952.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.azbar.org/about-us/leadership/past-presidents/ |website=State Bar of Arizona - Past Presidents |publisher=State Bar of Arizona |access-date=24 May 2024 |title=Past Presidents }}</ref> He also was president of the American Bar Association.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lawyers: The Right Track |url=https://time.com/archive/6811415/lawyers-the-right-track/ |access-date=24 May 2024 |agency=Time |publisher=Time USA LLC |date=October 18, 1963}}</ref>
==Federal judicial service==
On August 26, 1963, Craig was nominated by President John F. Kennedy to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Arizona vacated by Judge Arthur Marshall Davis. Craig was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 25, 1963, and received his commission on October 2, 1963. He served as Chief Judge from 1973 to 1979. He assumed senior status on October 1, 1979. He served as a Judge of the Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals from 1982 to 1986. Craig remained in senior status until his death on June 29, 1986, in Phoenix.<ref name="auto"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Sources== * {{FJC Bio|531|nid=1379611|name=Walter Early Craig<!--(1909–1986)-->}}
{{s-start}} {{s-legal}} {{s-bef|before=Arthur Marshall Davis}} {{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona}}|years=1963–1979}} {{s-aft|after=Charles Leach Hardy}} {{s-bef|before=James Augustine Walsh}} {{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona}}|years=1973–1979}} {{s-aft|after=Charles Andrew Muecke}} {{s-end}}
{{AZDistrictChiefJudges|state=collapsed}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craig, Walter Early}} Category:1909 births Category:1986 deaths Category:Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona Category:United States district court judges appointed by John F. Kennedy Category:Stanford Law School alumni Category:United States Navy personnel of World War II Category:Presidents of the American Bar Association