William Wood Porter (September 8, 1826 – January 17, 1907) was an American military officer and jurist who served as Associate Justice of the Arizona Territorial Supreme Court from 1885 until 1889.

[2] President Grover Cleveland gave Porter a recess appointment as Associate Justice of the Arizona Territorial Supreme Court on October 23, 1885.

[5] Among the individuals recommending him for the appointment was United States Supreme Court Justice Stephen Johnson Field.

[7] In October 1886, Porter wrote to Attorney General Augustus Hill Garland asking for appointment as Chief Justice if Shield did not receive confirmation.

[4] In United States v. Tenney, 2 Arizona 127 (1886), Porter wrote a dissent involving the prosecution of Mormons under the Edmunds Act.

[4] In Shaw v. County of Pima, 2 Arizona 399 (1888), a disputed election resulted in one man taking office and accepting the accompanying salary.

When it was determined his opponent had actually won the election, the new-found winner sued for the pay he would have received if he had taken office at the start of his term.

Porter's ruling allowed for partial recovery of the lost funds under the theory the bank's employees would not have made any payments after the telegram was received.

[9] With Porter's term set to expire in another two days, President Benjamin Harrison appointed Joseph Henry Kibbey to be his replacement on August 5, 1889.

He requested to return to the Arizona bench after the resignation of Chief Justice Henry C. Gooding in May 1893 and in September 1893 as a replacement for Richard Elihu Sloan.