David Singleton Doty
How Judge Doty rules, drawn from 23 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Judge Doty no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled here.
About Judge Doty
David Singleton Doty was a judge of the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota. Appointed by President Ronald Reagan, Judge Doty received a commission on May 8, 1987. Judge Doty assumed senior status on June 30, 1998 and served until death on June 27, 2026.
How Judge Doty decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Zayed v. Associated Bank, N.A., he denied a renewed motion to dismiss based on in pari delicto because the pleadings did not establish how much the bank participated in or benefited from the alleged Ponzi scheme.
“At this stage in the proceedings, however, the court cannot determine the extent to which Associated Bank participated in and benefitted from the Ponzi scheme. ... As a result, dismissal on the basis of in pari delicto is not warranted at this time.”
In Joiner v. Metro Transit Police Department, Doty denied leave to amend because the proposed conspiracy claim against an already dismissed defendant would not survive a motion to dismiss.
“An amendment is futile when it would not survive a motion to dismiss. ... Because Hennepin County is no longer a defendant in this case, however, Joiner has no basis on which to proceed with the conspiracy claim. As a result, the amendment would be futile and the motion to amend must be denied.”
Procedural preferences
In Walker v. Skon, he denied a pro se plaintiff's request to extend an expired response deadline after a delay of more than four months, finding no excusable neglect, and granted the defendants' dispositive motion.
“Plaintiff attempted to seek an extension more than four months after the deadline to respond had passed. ... Finally, plaintiff’s pro se status does not excuse him from complying with court orders.”
In Joiner v. Metro Transit Police Department, Doty summarily denied the plaintiff's summary-judgment motion because the plaintiff did not identify record support for it.
“The court summarily denies the motion because Joiner has failed to support his motion as required.”
Cautions
In Shearer v. Cub Foods, Doty found that pro se status alone did not justify equitable tolling of an employment-discrimination filing deadline, but allowed the plaintiff to show when she received the agency’s notice before deciding whether the complaint was late.
“A plaintiff’s pro se status does not constitute grounds to equitably toll the statute of limitations.”
In United States v. Fields, Doty denied compassionate release despite commending the defendant's prison accomplishments. He found rehabilitation alone insufficient without further mitigating circumstances.
“But rehabilitation alone does not support release. The court commends Fields for his many accomplishments in prison but is unpersuaded that release is appropriate on this basis without more mitigating circumstances.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Defendant’s motion to dismiss [Docket No. 6] is granted as to counts A, C, E and G of plaintiff’s complaint. ... Defendant’s motion to dismiss [Docket No. 6] is denied without prejudice as to counts B and D”
“Defendants’ motion to dismiss and for summary judgment [Doc. No. 21] is granted. ... This action is dismissed with prejudice.”
“Plaintiff’s pro se motion to compel discovery [Doc. No. 34] is denied as moot.”
“The motion to dismiss [ECF No. 4] is granted”
“The motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 8] is denied”
“The motion for a temporary injunction [ECF No. 12] is denied.”
“Accordingly, based on the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the motion to dismiss [ECF No. 70] is denied.”
“The motion to strike and dismiss [ECF No. 34] is granted as set forth above”
“The motions to amend or supplement [ECF Nos. 32, 37, 42] are denied”
“The motion for summary judgment [ECF No. 48] is denied without prejudice.”
“IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that defendant's motion for summary judgment [Docket No. 21] is granted.”
“Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment [Doc. No. 42] is granted.”
“Defendant's motion for summary judgment [Doc. No. 50] is denied.”
“The motion to dismiss [ECF No. 25] is granted; ... The federal claim is dismissed with prejudice; and ... Any state law claims are dismissed without prejudice.”
“KFC did not willfully violate the FLSA or the MFLSA. ... The applicable statute of limitations for all plaintiffs asserting claims under the FLSA and the MFLSA is two years.”
“IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the motion for summary judgment [ECF 59] is granted.”
“Defendants' Motion to Dismiss (Doc. No. 7), is GRANTED; and ... This action is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
“The motions to dismiss [ECF Nos. 15, 17, 20, 26, 43, 50, 63] are granted;”
“The motions to sever [ECF Nos. 15, 17, 20, 26, 43, 50] are denied as moot.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median motion-to-ruling time: 112 days (N = 1).
From the docket records. Recent assignments (2026) are dominated by alien-detainee § 2241 habeas petitions and criminal matters; older terminated civil cases include Ponzi-receivership fraud, civil-rights, securities, and tax disputes. Senior judge (since 1998) still actively assigned cases in 2026.
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 | 1 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2025 | 1 | 2 |
| Mar 2025 | 2 | 2 |
| Sep 2024 | 5 | 3 |
| Mar 2024 | 3 | 3 |
| Sep 2023 | 1 | 6 |
| Mar 2023 | 7 | 6 |
| Sep 2022 | 3 | 2 |
| Mar 2022 | 3 | 1 |
| Sep 2021 | 4 | 5 |
| Mar 2021 | 2 | 4 |
| Sep 2020 | 4 | 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.
A historical record
Judge Doty no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled here. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.