Daniel Mack Traynor

How Judge Traynor rules, drawn from 15 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.

Judge Traynor left this court for the U.S. Supreme Court. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled here.

Court
United States District Court for the District of North Dakota
Position
District judge
Status
Elevated to Eighth Cir. 2026
Served
2020–2026
Appointed by
Donald Trump (Republican)
Commissioned
January 13, 2020
ABA rating
Unanimously Well Qualified
Education
University of North Dakota (B.A., 1994); University of North Dakota School of Law (J.D., with distinction, Order of the Coif, 1997)
Signed orders read
15

About Judge Traynor

Daniel Mack Traynor was a judge of the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota. Appointed by President Donald J. Trump, Judge Traynor received a commission on January 13, 2020. Judge Traynor left the court on July 28, 2026 on appointment to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Signed rulings

A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.

North Dakota v. United States
1:19-cv-00150-DMT-ARS · 2023-12-13
Summary judgment (defendant) Denied

“the United States' Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED.”

Motion to certify question (defendant) Denied

“At this stage, it is simply too late to certify a question of law this Court has already resolved. ... Accordingly, the United States' Motion for Certified Question is DENIED.”

Summary judgment (plaintiff) Granted in part

“North Dakota's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment is GRANTED insofar as the undisputed evidence shows the Corps failed to follow its mandatory permitting procedures. ... In this regard, North Dakota's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment is DENIED.”

Motion for hearing (plaintiff) Denied

“Because the issues raised by the Parties can be decided on the record and the relevant caselaw, the Court concludes a hearing on the matter is unnecessary. Accordingly, North Dakota's Motion for Hearing is DENIED.”

MBI Oil and Gas, LLC v. Royalty Interests Partnership, LP
1:22-cv-00187-DMT-CRH · 2024-04-18
Summary judgment (defendant) Granted

“Royalty's Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED”

Summary judgment (defendant) Granted in part

“Grayson Mill's Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED, in part, and DENIED, in part”

Summary judgment (plaintiff) Denied

“MBI's Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED.”

Evitt v. State of North Dakota
1:24-cv-00159 · 2024-12-30
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“The State of North Dakota’s Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction is GRANTED. This case is, therefore, DISMISSED.”

Wilansky v. Bakke
3:23-cv-00142 · 2024-04-03
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“the Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss Claim One are GRANTED for the same reasons articulated in Case No. 1:18-cv-236, Doc. No. 290.”

Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“the Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss are GRANTED. The Amended Complaint is DISMISSED with prejudice.”

Motions to strike (defendant) Moot / procedural

“Because this Order dismisses the Amended Complaint with prejudice, the City and County Defendants’ Motion to Strike is MOOT.”

United States v. Baker
1:20-cr-00104 · 2025-07-22
Motion to vacate 2255 (Michael Todd Baker) Denied

“Baker’s Motion to Vacate, Set Aside, or Correct Sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Section 2255 (Doc. No. 178) is DENIED.”

Cervantes v. Morton County, North Dakota
1:22-cv-00211 · 2024-03-01
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“the Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED. The Complaint is DISMISSED with prejudice.”

United States v. Hall
1:20-cr-00176 · 2025-07-09
Motion to vacate 2255 (Richard Hall) Denied

“Hall’s motion to vacate, set aside, or correct a sentence pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (Doc. No. 96) is DENIED.”

FA ND Chev, LLC v. Kupper
1:20-cv-00138 · 2023-07-11
Motion for leave to file under seal (multiple parties) Denied

“the Motions for Leave to File under Seal are DENIED. The Parties are directed to file each document publicly without restriction.”

United States v. Lazalde
1:19-cr-00136 · 2025-05-05
Motion to vacate 2255 (Alejandro Lazalde) Denied

“Lazalde’s Motion to Vacate under 28 U.S.C. Section 2255 is DENIED. The Motion to Vacate is, therefore, DISMISSED.”

MBI Oil and Gas, LLC v. Royalty Interests Partnership, LP
1:22-cv-00187-DMT-CRH · 2024-10-09
Motion for attorney fees (defendant) Granted in part

“Royalty’s Motion for Attorneys’ Fees and Costs is GRANTED, in part, and DENIED, in part. The Clerk of Court is directed to amend the judgment to award Royalty attorneys’ fees in the amount of $82,063.20 and costs totaling $350.”

United States v. Johnson
1:22-cr-00185 · 2023-05-24
Motion to dismiss indictment (defendant) Granted in part

“the Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss Indictment is GRANTED, in part, and DENIED, in part. The Indictment is DISMISSED without prejudice.”

Gipp v. Webb
1:19-cv-00213 · 2024-01-25
Summary judgment (defendant) Granted

“the Court GRANTS the United States Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 117) regarding Officer Webb’s use of taser being objectively reasonable, and that it was objectively reasonable for Officer Webb to use deadly force”

Summary judgment (plaintiff) Denied

“Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 119) is DENIED”

Motion for hearing (plaintiff) Moot / procedural

“Plaintiffs request for a hearing regarding the summary judgment motions (Doc. No. 127) is hereby MOOT.”

Caseload & timing

From public federal docket records for this judge.

Durations span a 12-day alien-detainee habeas to a 535-day oil-and-gas lease case. Keyword sample; not a representative caseload. Several cases (Structural Preservation Systems; EEOC v. East 40; West v. Bullrock; AstraZeneca v. Wrigley) remain pending.

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 months3
Bench trials submitted more than six months0
Bankruptcy appeals pending more than six months0
Social Security appeals pending more than six months0
Civil cases pending more than three years6
ReportMotions over six monthsCases over three years
Mar 202636
Sep 202514
Mar 202517
Sep 2024116
Mar 202496
Sep 2023414
Mar 2023518
Sep 20221418
Mar 20221813
Sep 202196
Mar 20211310
Sep 2020610

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 Traynor left this court for the U.S. Supreme Court. 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.