Nancy Garlock Edmunds
How Judge Edmunds rules, drawn from 32 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Edmunds
Nancy Garlock Edmunds is a judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Appointed by President George H.W. Bush, Judge Edmunds received a commission on February 10, 1992. Judge Edmunds assumed senior status on August 1, 2012.
Judge Edmunds's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Edmunds, 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
Trial
In non-jury trials, proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law must be filed prior to trial unless the Court sets a later date at the final pretrial conference.
“In non-jury trials, proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law must be filed prior to trial unless the Court sets a later date at the final pretrial conference.”
Trial
Motions in limine must be filed at the Final Pretrial Conference or two weeks prior to trial , whichever occurs first, and are generally scheduled for hearing prior to trial, if possible.
“Motions in limine must be filed at the Final Pretrial Conference or two weeks prior to trial , whichever occurs first, and are generally scheduled for hearing prior to trial, if possible.”
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).
- Procedures for Access, Service, and Management of Sealed Documents ↗
- Procedures for the Filing, Service and Management of Highly Sensitive Documents ↗
- Standing Order for Discovery and Inspection and Fixing Motion Cut-Off Date in Criminal Cases ↗
- Pro Se Filings (Revised & Amended) ↗
- Filing a New Civil Case or Civil Initiating Papers Under Seal ↗
How Judge Edmunds decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Cautions
In a bankruptcy appeal challenging a trustee’s stock sale, she dismissed the debtor’s appeal for lack of standing because even a higher sale price would not create a surplus for him. A debtor appealing an estate transaction needs a concrete financial stake.
“Appellant lacks any pecuniary interest in the appeal, and he lacks standing as a result.”
In Jackson v. Sedgwick Claims Management Services, she denied two requests to amend after finding that the proposed RICO allegations would not defeat the defendants’ dismissal motions.
“because the additional allegations in the motions to amend could not defeat Defendants’ motions to dismiss—the amendments would be futile.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“the Commissioner's motion for summary judgment (ECF No. 14) is DENIED.”
“Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment (ECF No. 10) is GRANTED IN PART. The decision of the Commissioner of Social Security is REMANDED for further administrative proceedings consistent with the R&R and pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g).”
“Having conducted a de novo review of the portions of the Magistrate Judge's report to which specific objections have been filed, the Court OVERRULES Defendants' objections and ACCEPTS AND ADOPTS the Magistrate Judge's report and recommendation. Accordingly, Defendants' motion for summary judgment is DENIED.”
“For the foregoing reasons, Defendant's motion to dismiss is GRANTED.”
“Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff's Second Amended Complaint (ECF No. 38) is DENIED.”
“IT IS ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that Defendants' motion to dismiss is GRANTED, and this case is hereby DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“the Court GRANTS Defendants’ motion for summary judgment.”
“Defendants’ motion to dismiss is GRANTED as to Count Three and as to all claims against Mr. Preston in his individual capacity. Defendants’ motion to dismiss is in all other respects DENIED.”
“the DPOA’s motion to dismiss is GRANTED”
“Plaintiff’s motion for sanctions is DENIED”
“Plaintiff’s motion to exclude the expert report and testimony of the TEAM Experts is GRANTED.”
“Plaintiff’s motion to exclude expert reports and testimony of Dr. Lee E. Branscome is DENIED.”
“Defendant’s motions to exclude expert reports, opinion testimony, and the sur-rebuttal report of Dr. Gerald Galloway are GRANTED.”
“the Court denies without prejudice Plaintiffs’ motion for class certification”
“Plaintiff’s motion for reconsideration is DENIED.”
“GRANTS Defendants’ motion to dismiss. It is further ordered that Plaintiffs’ complaint is hereby DISMISSED with prejudice.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
The reviewed matters reflect a broad mix of civil, criminal, and magistrate-duty work. They provide descriptive caseload context rather than a complete count.
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 | 2 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 4 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 3 |
| Mar 2024 | 1 | 3 |
| Sep 2023 | 2 | 4 |
| Mar 2023 | 6 | 5 |
| Sep 2022 | 2 | 5 |
| Mar 2022 | 6 | 5 |
| Sep 2021 | 4 | 1 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 2 |
| 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 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, not for Judge Edmunds: 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 | 2,926 | 8.3 months |
| Closed with no court action | 410 | 2.9 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 1,246 | 4.1 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 1,252 | 15.3 months |
| Closed during trial | 18 | 35.8 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 2,926 | 8.3 months |
| Sep 2024 | 2,615 | 7.9 months |
| Sep 2023 | 2,616 | 8.5 months |
| Sep 2022 | 2,541 | 9.2 months |
| Sep 2021 | 2,405 | 10.2 months |
| Sep 2020 | 2,677 | 9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 3,237 | 8.6 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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