Ajmel A. Quereshi
How Judge Quereshi rules, drawn from 20 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Quereshi
Ajmel A. Quereshi joined the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland as a magistrate judge in April 2022. Before his appointment, he was senior counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, worked on prisoners' and immigrants' rights at the ACLU, and directed Howard University School of Law's Civil Rights Clinic.
Judge Quereshi's practices and standing orders
The court's website lists no individual practices or standing orders of Judge Quereshi's own (checked October 9, 2026), so the court's local rules and general orders are the place to look (court page ↗).
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).
- Order 2026-05: Redacted Filings in FRCP 5.2(c) Cases ↗
- Order 2026-03: Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Court Filings ↗
- Order 2025-05: Procedures for the Filing of Sealed Documents ↗
- Amended Order 2021-13: Removal Actions ↗
- Amended Order 2022-04: Social Security Cases ↗
- Second Amended Order 2021-02: Highly Sensitive Documents ↗
- Order 2020-01: Discovery in Criminal Cases ↗
- Order 2018-07: Amicus Briefs ↗
- Order 2018-08: Service of Rule 68 Offers of Judgment ↗
- Second Amended Order 2025-01: Petitions for Writs of Habeas Corpus—Alien Detainee ↗
- Order 2024-01: Deficiency Notices ↗
How Judge Quereshi decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Pulaski v. Seven Sons Truck & Trailer Repair LLC, he applied the Colleton factors and granted the defendants' motion to vacate entries of default under Rule 55(c), while warning that further delay could result in sanctions.
“the Court will grant Defendants' Motion to Vacate. ... However, the Court warns Defendants that further delays may result”
In Curran v. MOM's Organic Market, Quereshi dismissed a retaliation claim but allowed hostile-work-environment and race-discrimination claims to proceed. He gave the plaintiff time to amend.
“Defendants' Motion to Dismiss, ECF No. 15, is granted, in part, and denied, in part. It is GRANTED as to Plaintiff's retaliation claim (Count II). It is DENIED as to Plaintiff's hostile work environment and race discrimination claims (Counts I, III).”
Procedural preferences
In Insurance Company of the West v. Prime Logistics, Quereshi recommended default judgment for $406,736.22 after reviewing the claimed liability and damages.
“it is recommended that Plaintiff's Motion for Default Judgment be granted in the amount of $406,736.22.”
Cautions
In Brady v. Walmart, Quereshi allowed expert testimony within defined fields of expertise but barred the experts from deciding witness credibility or offering legal conclusions.
“Mr. Vince and Mr. Abramson may not present legal conclusions and must avoid any specialized legal terminology in their testimony.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“For the reasons outlined above, Defendants' Motion to Vacate the Orders of Default, ECF No. 15, is GRANTED. The Court will set aside the entries of default, ECF Nos. 10, 13, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55(c).”
“Defendants' Motion to Dismiss, ECF No. 15, is granted, in part, and denied, in part. It is GRANTED as to Plaintiff's retaliation claim (Count II). It is DENIED as to Plaintiff's hostile work environment and race discrimination claims (Counts I, III).”
“For the aforementioned reasons, it is recommended that Plaintiff's Motion for Default Judgment be granted in the amount of $406,736.22.”
“I recommend that the Motion be granted, in part, and denied, in part, and that Plaintiffs be granted a permanent injunction, awarded statutory damages”
“For the following reasons, the Court shall recommend that the Motion be granted.”
“For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiffs' Amended Motion for Default Judgment, ECF No. 26, is granted. The Court recommends that damages be awarded in the amount of $146,838.47”
“Defendants' Motion to Exclude or Limit Experts is GRANTED, in part, and DENIED, in part. Mr. Vince, Mr. Abramson, and Dr. Bryan are precluded from testifying to the extent discussed above.”
“For the aforementioned reasons, it is recommended that Plaintiff's Motion for Default Judgment be granted in the amount of $95,919.02.”
“Grants the parties’ Joint Motion for Approval of Settlement, ECF No. 37;”
“the Court shall grant Defendants’ Motions to Dismiss.”
“case is REMANDED for further proceedings in accordance with this Opinion.”
“Plaintiffs’ Motion for Approval of Settlement, ECF No. 100, shall be granted.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
The reviewed consent and direct-assignment caseload includes pension-fund collection actions, wage claims, employment and civil-rights cases, contract and franchise disputes, and insurance-coverage litigation. Many of these cases were recently filed and remained pending, limiting conclusions about case duration and final outcomes.
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 | 4 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 4 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 4 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 4 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 7 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 9 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 12 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 13 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 12 |
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 District of Maryland, not for Judge Quereshi: 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 | 3,191 | 6.7 months |
| Closed with no court action | 151 | 5.7 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 2,564 | 5.9 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 457 | 13.6 months |
| Closed during trial | 19 | 33.9 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 3,191 | 6.7 months |
| Sep 2024 | 3,119 | 7.5 months |
| Sep 2023 | 3,370 | 9 months |
| Sep 2022 | 3,053 | 9.5 months |
| Sep 2021 | 2,629 | 8.9 months |
| Sep 2020 | 2,469 | 9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 2,709 | 7.9 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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Ezel grounds your drafting and research in this profile: what has persuaded Judge Quereshi, and what has not, cited to the signed orders.
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