Michael B. North
How Judge North rules, drawn from 24 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge North
Michael B. North has served as a United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana since March 2014. He spent about sixteen years in private litigation practice before joining the bench.
Judge North's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge North, 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.
- Judge's procedures and schedules ↗
- PROTECTIVE ORDER ↗
- GuidlinesforSettlementConferences ↗
- Civil Practice Guidelines ↗
- E-discoveryGuidelines ↗
Key rules
Filing
Use the model protective order in civil cases and file redlined and final versions when changes are made.
“The attached is the model protective order which Judge North prefers to be used in civil cases. If any changes are made to the model protective order, a redlined version as well as the final pdf version must be filed.”
Conferences
Contact chambers by telephone for settlement conference dates.
“Parties may obtain available settlement conference dates by contacting chambers BY TELEPHONE”
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 North decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
In Caldwell, actual notice, the plaintiff’s service efforts, and her pro se status supported leniency for the first challenged service attempt, even though the complaint required dismissal on pleading grounds.
“For these reasons, the undersigned denies Defendant’s motion under Rules 12(b)(4) and 12(b)(5).”
In Caldwell, the court allowed twenty-one days to amend the deficient ADEA and ADA claims while dismissing the Title VII claims with prejudice.
“Plaintiff’s claims under Title VII are DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE for failure to state a claim. Plaintiff’s claims under the ADEA and the ADA are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE, and the Court grants Plaintiff leave to amend her Complaint in accordance with this Court's Order and Reasons within 21 days from the date on which it issues.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that the Rule 12(b)(6) Motion to Dismiss on Behalf of Jason Williams (rec. doc. 22) be GRANTED.”
“IT IS FURTHER RECOMMENDED that the Motion for Leave to File Supplemental Brief and Declaratory Judgment (rec. doc. 34) be DENIED.”
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that Motion for Summary Judgment of Defendants, Sheriff Timothy Soignet, Major Rhonda Ledet, and Lt. Col. Stephen Bergeron, on the Issue of Qualified Immunity (rec. doc. 21) be GRANTED.”
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that the Motion for Attorneys’ Fees and Costs (rec. doc. 29) be GRANTED, and Plaintiffs be awarded $21,424.50 in fees and $402.50 in costs for a total of $21,827.00.”
“IT IS ORDERED that the Motion to Compel Discovery Responses and for Appropriate Sanctions (rec. doc. 34) is DENIED IN PART AS UNTIMELY. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Motion to Compel Discovery Responses and for Appropriate Sanctions (rec. doc. 34) is GRANTED IN PART to the extent that the Court awards Defendant $584.00 in fees expended for the filing of the first motion to compel.”
“IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the motion to expedite (rec. doc. 35) is DISMISSED AS MOOT.”
North's R&R adopted by Vance (clear-error, no objection). Pro se IFP 1983; recommended DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE of claims against Home Depot/Cox/Allied Universal/NOPD/City as frivolous + failure to state a claim (28 USC 1915), allowing claims vs Officer Delaune to proceed. This 1915 screening order did not resolve a party motion.
At prisoner screening, recommended dismissal with prejudice because the defendant prosecutor was immune from damages for the alleged prosecutorial conduct. The district judge adopted the recommendation. No party motion was resolved.
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment be GRANTED, the Commissioner's brief be REJECTED, and Plaintiff's case be REMANDED for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”
“Based upon these facts, IT IS RECOMMENDED that Kin Interinsurance Network’s Motion for Judgment of Default Against McClenny, Moseley & Associates, PLLC (rec. doc. 30) be GRANTED AS UNOPPOSED.”
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that Plaintiff's brief (rec. doc. 9) be REJECTED, the Commissioner's brief (rec. doc. 12) be SUSTAINED, and Plaintiff's case be DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
Following earlier partial grants of two sanctions motions, recommended evidence preclusion and an adverse inference in response to a court-issued show-cause order. This later recommendation does not supply a distinct new party-motion outcome; the earlier dispositions are contextual history.
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) (rec. doc. 16) be GRANTED, and Plaintiff’s Complaint be DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.”
“IT IS RECOMMENDED that the Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff’s Complaint Pursuant to FRCP 12(b)(6) for Failure to State a Claim (rec. doc. 17) filed by Defendant Richard Pete Neal be GRANTED, and Plaintiff’s claims against Richard Pete Neal be DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
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 | 1 |
| Sep 2021 | 2 | 1 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2020 | 0 | 0 |
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 Eastern District of Louisiana, not for Judge North: 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 | 10,411 | 79.9 months |
| Closed with no court action | 3,511 | 86.6 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 2,814 | 14.6 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 4,062 | 86.8 months |
| Closed during trial | 24 | 23.2 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 10,411 | 79.9 months |
| Sep 2024 | 6,506 | 10.7 months |
| Sep 2023 | 6,610 | 24.2 months |
| Sep 2022 | 8,635 | 69.4 months |
| Sep 2021 | 11,535 | 24.9 months |
| Sep 2020 | 16,631 | 36 months |
| Sep 2019 | 9,196 | 10.3 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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