The Honorable Kim R. Gibson was born in Trenton, New Jersey on May 29, 1948, the son of James Russell Gibson and Eleanor Martha (Mitchell) Gibson.

Judge Gibson graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1970, with a Bachelor of Science degree, and, in 1975, he received his Juris Doctor degree magna cum laude from the Dickinson School of Law. While in law school, he was an editor of the Dickinson Law Review.  He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army in June 1970 and, following completion of airborne and ranger training, he served as an armor officer until 1975 and as a JAG officer until 1978. 

 Following his release from active duty, he continued to serve in the United States Army Reserve and, in 1996, retired as a Colonel, JAG, USAR. In 1991, he and his JAG Detachment were activated during the first Gulf War.

From 1978 to 1997, Judge Gibson practiced law as a sole practitioner in Somerset, Pennsylvania. During that time, he served as a public defender, attorney for Children and Youth Services, solicitor for a school district and various municipalities, and as solicitor for Somerset County. He was elected to the Somerset County Court of Common Pleas in 1997. During his time on the common pleas bench, he was instrumental in establishing Victim Impact Panels and a Juvenile Drug Court—the second such court in Pennsylvania at that time.

President George W. Bush appointed Judge Gibson to the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania on September 23, 2003. Judge Gibson is an adjunct instructor at the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and a member of the Board of Counselors for the Penn State Dickinson School of Law. In 2013, Chief Justice John Roberts appointed Judge Gibson as a member of the Committee on Court Administration and Case Management (CACM) of the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Judge Gibson is the former Co-chairman of the Flight 93 Task Force. Composed of members from all over the United States, this group was tasked by Congress to establish both a national memorial to the passengers and crew of Flight 93 and a national park at the site where Flight 93 crashed in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, on September 11, 2001. Judge Gibson also served as a Little League coach and manager for many years.