[2] On May 27, 2010, President Barack Obama nominated Cogburn to a seat on the Western District of North Carolina.

[3] Obama renominated Cogburn on January 5, 2011, and he was reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on February 3, 2011.

[2] In February 2022, Cogburn announced his decision to move to senior status to take a reduced court caseload.

[5] In November 2024, Cogburn reversed his decision to take senior status and remain a full-time federal district court judge.

[7] Cogburn was a member of a three-judge panel that struck down the redistricting of certain North Carolina Congressional districts for relying too heavily on race.