Judge Michael R. Murphy was appointed to the Tenth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals by President Clinton on August 14, 1995.

Judge Murphy was born August 6, 1947 in Denver, Colorado. He was raised in Rawlins, Wyoming. He received his B.A. from Creighton University in 1969 and his J.D., with honor, from the University of Wyoming in 1972.

He is married to Mickey Donnelly Murphy and has two children, Amy and Michael.

In 1972-73, Judge Murphy served as a law clerk to the late David T. Lewis, then Chief Judge of the Tenth Circuit. Judge Murphy began private practice in 1973 as an associate in the Salt Lake City law firm of Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough. He remained with that law firm until his appointment in 1986 by Governor Norman Bangerter to the Third District Court, a trial court of general jurisdiction over Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele Counties, Utah. Judge Murphy was the presiding judge of the Third District Court from 1990 until his appointment to the Tenth Circuit in 1995.

Judge Murphy served on many boards, commissions and committees, including the Utah State Sentencing Commission, the Utah Advisory Committee on Child Support Guidelines, the Utah Child Sexual Abuse Task Force, the Board of District Court Judges and the Utah Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Rules of Civil Procedure.

Judge Murphy was named Judge of the Year by the Utah State Bar in 1992. In 1989 he was awarded the Freedom of Information Award by the Society of Professional Journalists and in 1995 the Utah Minority Bar Association award.

Judge Murphy is a member of the Utah and American Bar Associations. He is a member and past president of Sutherland Inn of Court II and a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation.

Judge Murphy's chambers are in Salt Lake City, Utah.