Frank W. Volk was born in Morgantown, West Virginia. He assumed his current position as the Chief United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on October 17, 2019, following his April 2, 2019, nomination by President Donald J. Trump and his October 16, 2019, unanimous confirmation by the United States Senate.
Immediately preceding his Article III appointment, he served as Chief Judge of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of West Virginia beginning October 9, 2015. He is a 1992 graduate of the West Virginia University College of Law. He served as Editor-in-Chief of the West Virginia Law Review and attained Order of the Coif.
Chief Judge Volk has taught part-time at the West Virginia University College of Law for nearly twenty years. He has taught Bankruptcy and Advanced Bankruptcy. He regularly teaches Federal Courts, Federal Civil Rights, and Advanced Torts. He has also authored a number of articles and spoken at national and regional conferences for both bench and bar on various law or law-related topics. He is also a faculty member for the Federal Judicial Center.
Chief Judge Volk is a Rodel Judicial Fellow and an American Bar Foundation Fellow. He was admitted to practice in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, the West Virginia Bar, and the Pennsylvania Bar. He previously served as a law clerk to three federal judges, including the Honorable M. Blane Michael (United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit) and both the Honorable John T. Copenhaver, Jr., and the Honorable Charles H. Haden II (United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia). Chief Judge Volk also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Margaret L. Workman (Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia).
Chief Judge Volk presently serves on the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Magistrate Judges System, a body composed of fourteen judges appointed by the Chief Justice. He has also served on multiple planning committees relating to the Judiciary, including the Article III Judges’ Workshop for the Fourth Circuit (2024), the Judicial Conference for the Fourth Circuit (2024-2025), and the Federal Judges Association Quadrennial (2023-2026). He has been privileged to speak at multiple federal judicial education events since 2015.
Prior to assuming the bench, Chief Judge Volk served since at least 2005 as counsel to the District Court. He was a permanent member of the Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference, and he has contributed volunteer service to the American Bankruptcy Institute for many years. Chief Judge Volk previously served on the Editorial Board for the American Bankruptcy Journal, along with holding a Coordinating Editor position with the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, focusing on the Problems in the Code column. Chief Judge Volk previously worked in private practice with the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson.
