Robert B. Collings
Judge Collings no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.
How Judge Collings decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
Resolves prisoner due-process claims on the Wolff v. McDonnell 'some evidence' standard without weighing credibility, allowing a defendant's dispositive motion where the record supplies some evidence for the disciplinary finding.
“it is ORDERED that the Defendants’ Motion To Dismiss Or In The Alternative, Motion For Summary Judgment (#20) be, and the same hereby is, ALLOWED. Final Judgment shall enter for the defendants.”
Where a Rule 12(b)(6) motion is untimely because answers are already on file, he converts it to a Rule 12(c) motion for judgment on the pleadings and recommends denial while material fact and qualified-immunity issues remain.
“I RECOMMEND that the Motion to Dismiss (#131) and the Defendants’, Glodis and Renaud, Motion to Strike, etc. (#140) be DENIED.”
Cautions
Refuses to resolve an ambiguous contract term as a matter of law where extrinsic or course-of-conduct evidence is needed, denying both sides' summary-judgment motions and sending interpretation to the jury.
“it is ORDERED that Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (#28) and Defendant Mersen Scotland Holytown, Ltd’s Motion for Summary Judgment on the Issue of Contract Interpretation (#30) be, and the same hereby are, DENIED.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“it is ORDERED that the Defendants’ Motion To Dismiss Or In The Alternative, Motion For Summary Judgment (#20) be, and the same hereby is, ALLOWED. Final Judgment shall enter for the defendants.”
“it is ORDERED that Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (#28) and Defendant Mersen Scotland Holytown, Ltd’s Motion for Summary Judgment on the Issue of Contract Interpretation (#30) be, and the same hereby are, DENIED.”
“I RECOMMEND that Defendant City of Boston’s Motion for Summary Judgment pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 56 (#172) be ALLOWED as to all claims which have been brought against it.”
“I RECOMMEND that the Motion to Dismiss (#131) and the Defendants’, Glodis and Renaud, Motion to Strike, etc. (#140) be DENIED.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median case duration in the sampled dockets: 553 days (N = 2).
Median motion-to-ruling time: 224 days (N = 3).
A historical record
Judge Collings 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.