Robert J. Kauffman
Judge Kauffman no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.
How Judge Kauffman decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
His recommendations were not rubber-stamped: district judges rejected his R&R outright in at least four of the fifteen reviewed matters here (a maritime limitation-of-liability question, an FTCA jurisdictional-timeliness question, a state repose-versus-tolling question, and an RCRA pleading-sufficiency question), each time on a close or unsettled legal question where the district judge weighed the circuit authority differently.
“The Court must disagree with the Magistrate Judge's reasoning and recommendation for at least three reasons.”
Procedural preferences
As the parties' consented judge of record in Section 1983 police-misconduct suits, resolved credibility disputes (whose testimony to believe on probable cause and use of force) as the trier of fact rather than deferring them to a jury, and his factual findings were upheld on appeal under the deferential clearly-erroneous standard.
“the magistrate judge found that there had been probable cause for Kraushaar's arrest on the DUI charge and probable cause to believe that he was hiding something in his clothing, thereby giving rise to the strip search.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Report and Recommendation of the Magistrate Judge [Doc. #9] is REJECTED and Defendant's Motion to Dismiss [Doc. #5] is DENIED.”
“The Court cannot accept the Magistrate Judge's recommendation in this case... the Court finds that the effect of Irwin is not to alter the stature of the FTCA time limitations from jurisdictional prerequisites to mere affirmative defenses.”
“the Village's Motion to Dismiss Counts I, III, and IV of the Complaint is DENIED, and the Village's Motion to Dismiss Count II is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part... Richard Robbins' Motion to Dismiss Count X of the Complaint is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part.”
“The Magistrate Judge issued his Report and Recommendation on May 22, 1997, recommending that all prayers for punitive damages should be stricken from the Complaint but that the motion to dismiss should be denied in all other respects.”
“The Magistrate Judge recommends that Motions to Dismiss be denied as to Count One and that the Motions to Dismiss be allowed as to Count Two.”
“Magistrate Judge Kauffman denied Defendant's motion to dismiss on the basis that he could find no new arguments that were not already presented and rejected by the Court in its previous Order of November 8, 1994.”
“This Court ADOPTS the Report and Recommendation [# 15]. This case is TERMINATED... The Defendants' Motion to Dismiss [# 8] is therefore GRANTED, and this Case is TERMINATED.”
“For the reasons set forth herein, the Report & Recommendation is ADOPTED in part and REJECTED in part. Defendants' Motion to Dismiss [# 71] is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART, and Defendants' Motion to Dismiss [# 18] is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART AS MOOT.”
“IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Report and Recommendation of the Magistrate Judge [Doc. #20] is REJECTED. Defendant's Motions to Dismiss [Docs. #4, #8, and #16] are GRANTED. This case is dismissed with prejudice.”
“The Court dismisses the rescission claim of Count I with prejudice.”
“this Court adopts the Report and Recommendation of Magistrate Judge Kauffman (# 33) and the Defendants' Motions to Dismiss (# 17, 21, 23) are DENIED.”
“neither Plaintiff nor Defendants have objected to the portion of the Magistrate Judge's report which recommends that Defendants' Motions to Dismiss [Docs. # 6 and # 8] be granted as to Count One of the Complaint... Accordingly, the Court adopts the Magistrate Judge's recommendation.”
“neither Plaintiff nor Defendants have objected to the portion of the Magistrate Judge's report which recommended that Plaintiff's Motion to Remand [Doc. # 14] be denied... the Court adopts the Magistrate Judge's recommendation in both these regards.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Sampled cases assigned to him span 1984-1998: a heavy mix of state-prisoner Section 1983 and habeas matters (the bulk of his 636(b) referral docket), Social Security appeals, and general civil/diversity and employment cases on which he sat by consent or handled non-dispositive referrals.
A historical record
Judge Kauffman no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.