John H. England, III
How Judge England rules, drawn from 20 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge England
John H. England III became a United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Alabama in 2013. He previously served as First Assistant United States Attorney for the district, following years as a federal prosecutor. He graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law.
Judge England's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge England, as published on the court's website (checked October 9, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
Key rules
Contacting chambers
Copy all opposing counsel or unrepresented parties on email to chambers.
“Ex parte communications are not allowed. All communications to the chambers’ email address must show a copy to all opposing counsel or pro se parties.”
Filing
Provide a courtesy copy within three business days for submissions exceeding 30 pages, including exhibits.
“For all submissions exceeding thirty (30) pages (including exhibits), the filing party must submit, within three (3) business days of filing, an exact courtesy copy”
Discovery
Before filing a discovery motion, serve opposing counsel with a letter identifying the disputed requests.
“Before filing any motion regarding a discovery dispute, the moving party must serve the opposing party with a letter identifying each issue or discovery request in dispute”
Standing orders for every case in this court
Orders the court applies to all of its cases, whichever judge has them, as published on the court's website (checked October 9, 2026).
How Judge England decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
Recommends dismissing an action without prejudice for failure to prosecute, and the recommendation was accepted and adopted.
“recommending that this action be dismissed without prejudice for Plaintiff's failure to prosecute. (Doc. 44). ... should be ACCEPTED and hereby ADOPTS it as the findings of the Court. This action is therefore DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
In a consent case, the court denied dismissal of a complaint that could state a claim if clarified, granted a more definite statement, and allowed 21 days for an amended complaint.
“Plaintiff is directed to file an Amended Complaint within 21 days of the date of this Order.”
Cautions
In Broadhead v. Holiday, England recommended dismissal without prejudice under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g) because the plaintiff did not pay the filing and administrative fees when he filed; the district judge adopted that recommendation.
“recommending that this case be dismissed without prejudice for the plaintiff's failure to pay the filing fee and administrative fees at the time he filed the complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ... should be ACCEPTED and hereby ADOPTS it as the findings of the Court. The case is therefore DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“recommending that this case be dismissed without prejudice for the plaintiff's failure to pay the filing fee and administrative fees at the time he filed the complaint pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(g). ... should be ACCEPTED and hereby ADOPTS it as the findings of the Court. The case is therefore DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“recommending that this action be dismissed without prejudice for Plaintiff's failure to prosecute. (Doc. 44). ... should be ACCEPTED and hereby ADOPTS it as the findings of the Court. This action is therefore DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“recommending that the Court dismiss this action without prejudice for failure to prosecute. (Doc. 10). ... should be ACCEPTED and hereby ADOPTS it as the findings of the Court. The case is therefore DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“motion to compel arbitration (doc. 14) is GRANTED. This case is STAYED during the pendency of arbitration proceedings.”
“motion to dismiss (Doc. 27) is DENIED in its entirety”
“motion for summary judgment (Doc. 30) is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART”
“REVERSED, and this action is REMANDED for further”
“Motion for Summary Judgment [37] is due to be GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART”
“the joint motion for approval of the settlement (doc. 23) is GRANTED, and the settlement is APPROVED.”
“the defendants' partial motion to dismiss (Doc. 29) be GRANTED”
“REVERSED, and this action is REMANDED for further proceedings.”
“motion for summary judgment (doc. 49) is GRANTED.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Judge England's consent and referral work includes employment and civil-rights disputes, Social Security appeals, insurance and contract cases, consumer and automobile claims, and prisoner matters. The available cases provide an illustrative rather than exhaustive mix.
Pending matters in the official report
Reported by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts under the Civil Justice Reform Act, as of March 31, 2026.
| Motions pending more than six months | 0 |
| Bench trials submitted more than six months | 0 |
| Bankruptcy appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Social Security appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Civil cases pending more than three years | 1 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2025 | 1 | 3 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 3 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 4 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 3 |
| Mar 2023 | 3 | 2 |
| Sep 2022 | 1 | 2 |
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 4 |
| Sep 2020 | 4 | 3 |
A snapshot on that date: matters listed may since have been decided or reassigned. A motion referred to a magistrate judge is counted for both judges. Motions in multidistrict litigation, section 2255 cases and Social Security appeals are not counted, and a very large three-year count is generally a multidistrict docket. Source: Appendix A of the report (PDF); about the report.
How long civil cases take in this court
For the whole of U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, not for Judge England: median time from filing to disposition of the civil cases the court closed in the 12 months ending September 30, 2025, as reported by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
| Cases | Median time | |
|---|---|---|
| All civil cases closed | 1,513 | 8.7 months |
| Closed with no court action | 113 | 2.5 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 1,380 | 9.1 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 6 | not reported |
| Closed during trial | 14 | 32.8 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 1,513 | 8.7 months |
| Sep 2024 | 1,290 | 8.6 months |
| Sep 2023 | 1,387 | 9.3 months |
| Sep 2022 | 1,507 | 11.3 months |
| Sep 2021 | 1,803 | 10.8 months |
| Sep 2020 | 1,507 | 10.9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 1,732 | 10.8 months |
The table leaves out prisoner petitions, land condemnations, deportation reviews, recovery of overpayments and enforcement of judgments, and reports no median for fewer than 10 cases. A district that closed a large multidistrict litigation in the period shows very large counts and long medians for that year. Source: Table C-5, U.S. District Courts (spreadsheet).
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