John O. Colvin

Who is John O. Colvin?

John O. Colvin is the Chief Judge of the United States Tax Court.

Colvin received an A.B. from the University of Missouri in 1968, and completed a J.D. there in 1971. He earned an LL.M. in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center in 1978. During college and law school he was employed by a private firm, Niedner, Niedner, Nack and Bodeux, of St. Charles, Missouri, and also worked for a number of political figures, including Missouri Attorney General John C. Danforth and Missouri State Representative Richard C. Marshall, both in Jefferson City; and for U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield and Congressman Thomas B. Curtis, in Washington, DC.

From 1975-84, Colvin served as Tax Counsel to Senator Bob Packwood, and thereafter was Counsel to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee for several years, and also served as an Adjunct Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center, beginning in 1987.

Colvin was appointed by President Ronald Reagan as Judge, United States Tax Court, on September 1, 1988, for a term ending August 31, 2003. He was reappointed by President George W. Bush on August 12, 2004, for a term ending August 11, 2019. Colvin was elected Chief Judge of the U.S.