Shaniek Mills Maynard
How Judge Maynard rules, drawn from 25 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Maynard
Shaniek Mills Maynard has served as a U.S. magistrate judge for the Southern District of Florida in Fort Pierce since June 2017. Before joining the bench, she was an assistant U.S. attorney and led a St. Lucie County program serving young people. She earned degrees from Howard University and Yale Law School.
Judge Maynard's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Maynard, as published on the court's website (checked October 8, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
Key rules
Filing
Send confidential settlement memoranda to chambers by email and mark them against docketing.
“each shall submit to this Court a Memorandum setting forth its position. The parties shall send their respective Memoranda directly to the undersigned’s Chambers by emailing them to: [email protected]. Given their confidential content, the Memoranda shall indicate clearly that they are NOT to be docketed in the case docket.”
Conferences
Parties with full settlement authority must personally attend a settlement conference under Judge Maynard’s standard order.
“Parties with full and complete settlement authority are required to personally attend the conference.”
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 8, 2026).
How Judge Maynard decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In United States v. Sharfi, she recommended denying the government’s summary-judgment motion and granting the landowners’ cross-motion after finding the man-made ditches were not relatively permanent waters and the wetlands lacked a continuous surface-water connection.
“Defendants' Cross Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 154) be granted ... Defendants' Cross Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 154) is GRANTED. The Court will separately enter judgment for Defendant.”
Procedural preferences
In L.H. v. Okeechobee County School Board, she recommended denying dismissal of a compulsory counterclaim as untimely because the IDEA’s 90-day period for an original action did not govern it.
“ORDERED and ADJUDGED that the Report and Recommendation [ECF No. 68] is AFFIRMED and ADOPTED. Plaintiffs' Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 58] is DENIED.”
Cautions
In Sneed v. Persad, she recommended dismissal without prejudice of a civil-rights complaint because Younger abstention and shotgun-pleading defects barred it as pleaded.
“Judge Maynard issued the Report, recommending that the Motion be granted ... dismissal is appropriate because (i) Plaintiff's claims are barred by the Younger abstention doctrine, and (ii) the Complaint is an impermissible shotgun pleading ... the Report [ECF No. 33] is AFFIRMED AND ADOPTED ... This case is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Magistrate Judge Shaniek Mills Maynard's Report and Recommendation regarding Defendants' Amended Motion to Dismiss ... is hereby ADOPTED. Plaintiffs' Complaint (DE 1) is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
“Judge Maynard issued the Report, recommending that the Motion be granted ... dismissal is appropriate because (i) Plaintiff's claims are barred by the Younger abstention doctrine, and (ii) the Complaint is an impermissible shotgun pleading ... the Report [ECF No. 33] is AFFIRMED AND ADOPTED ... This case is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“The Report recommends that Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 150) be denied ... Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 150) is DENIED.”
“Defendants' Cross Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 154) be granted ... Defendants' Cross Motion for Summary Judgment (DE 154) is GRANTED. The Court will separately enter judgment for Defendant.”
“recommending that Plaintiff's Motion be denied ... this Report and Recommendation (DE [43]) ... is APPROVED AND ADOPTED. Plaintiff's Motion to Dismiss Defendant, Elizabeth Angela Bellon, Only (DE [16]) is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“ORDERED and ADJUDGED that the Report and Recommendation [ECF No. 68] is AFFIRMED and ADOPTED. Plaintiffs' Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 58] is DENIED.”
“I respectfully RECOMMEND that Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment, DE 14, be GRANTED; that Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment, DE 16, be DENIED; and that Defendant's final administrative decision be REVERSED AND REMANDED for further proceedings consistent with the findings made in this report.”
“I respectfully RECOMMEND that Plaintiff's Motion for Emergency TRO, DE 6, be DENIED.”
“I respectfully recommend that the Motion be GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART and that the complaint be dismissed in its entirety but with leave to file an amended complaint.”
“I respectfully RECOMMEND that Plaintiff's Motion, DE 18, be GRANTED and that Plaintiff be awarded attorney fees in the amount of $7,300 under the EAJA”
“I respectfully RECOMMEND that Mark Sohn's Motion for Bill of Costs, DE 206, be DENIED WITH PREJUDICE for failure to comply with the timing requirements of Southern District of Florida Local Rule 7.3(c).”
“I therefore certify the facts set out above and RECOMMEND that presiding U.S. District Judge Judge Rosenberg GRANT Plaintiff's Renewed Motion for Contempt, DE 67, by setting a show cause hearing”
“I respectfully recommend that the Amended Motion to Reopen Habeas Proceeding, DE 34, be DENIED, and that this case be CLOSED.”
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 | 0 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2020 | 0 | 1 |
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 United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, not for Judge Maynard: 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 | 8,196 | 3.4 months |
| Closed with no court action | 848 | 3 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 7,287 | 3.5 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 16 | 10.1 months |
| Closed during trial | 45 | 17.1 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 8,196 | 3.4 months |
| Sep 2024 | 7,755 | 3.6 months |
| Sep 2023 | 20,408 | 0 months |
| Sep 2022 | 8,287 | 3.7 months |
| Sep 2021 | 8,536 | 3.2 months |
| Sep 2020 | 8,657 | 3.4 months |
| Sep 2019 | 9,471 | 3.7 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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