PIKEVILLE, KY (WMDJ) — The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky has announced that Pikeville will no longer serve as a place of holding federal court after this year.

According to General Order 25-15, signed by U.S. District Judge David Bunning, the Pikeville division will officially close on December 31, 2025. The order follows approval from the Judicial Council of the Sixth Circuit, certified by Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton.

Beginning January 1, 2026, cases that would have been filed in Pikeville will be reassigned to other divisions. Cases from Johnson, Magoffin, and Martin counties will move to the Ashland Division, while cases from Pike, Letcher, Floyd, and Knott counties will be handled by the London Division.

All pending Pikeville cases will also be transferred to those courts as part of the transition.

The order officially discontinues all business of the federal court at Pikeville, ending decades of service to Eastern Kentucky residents who have relied on the courthouse for hearings and filings.

The change takes effect at the end of this year.