Georgette Castner
How Judge Castner rules, drawn from 34 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Castner
Georgette Castner is a judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Appointed by President Joseph R. Biden, Judge Castner received a commission on April 5, 2022.
Judge Castner's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Castner, as published on the court's website (checked October 9, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
Key rules
Contacting chambers
Communicate with chambers through CM/ECF except in emergencies.
“Except on emergency matters, all communications with Chambers shall be in writing via CM/ECF, and not by telephone.”
Filing
Send courtesy copies only when chambers requests them.
“Counsel shall not provide courtesy copies to Chambers unless requested.”
Motions
Request a pre-motion conference by a letter of no more than three single-spaced pages before the motions listed in the preferences.
“a party must submit a letter, not to exceed three (3) single-spaced pages, requesting a pre-motion conference.”
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).
- Second Amended Standing Order 2026-02: In Re Increase in Immigration-Related Habeas Corpus Petitions seeking Emergent Relief ↗
- Standing Order 2025-05: IN RE Procedures for Access to and Service of Sealed Documents ↗
- Standing Order 2025-04: IN RE "Schedule A" Cases ↗
- Standing Order 2024-03: In re: Amendment to Procedures for Requesting, Filing, and Management of Highly Sensitive Documents and Guidance for Same ↗
- Standing Order 2024-02: Electronic Signatures ↗
How Judge Castner decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
In D'Urso v. BAMCO, Castner dismissed the complaint without prejudice and allowed the plaintiffs 30 days to amend if they could cure its pleading defects.
“To the extent that Plaintiffs believe they can cure the deficiencies in their complaint, Plaintiffs are given leave to amend within 30 days after the date of the accompanying Order.”
Cautions
In Berndt v. Heyco Products, Castner denied remand of an employment retaliation suit. She counted potentially recoverable statutory attorney fees toward the amount in controversy and found the plaintiff had not shown to a legal certainty that recovery would remain below the diversity threshold.
“Plaintiff's Motion to Remand (ECF No. 6) is DENIED.”
In a product liability suit over a fire, Castner ordered a spoliation inference after the plaintiffs failed to preserve the fire scene, limiting the defendant’s ability to investigate alternative causes.
“The Court finds that the lesser sanction of a spoliation inference is warranted in this case.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“the Court GRANTS Defendants' Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 17) in its entirety. Plaintiffs' Complaint (ECF No. 1) is DISMISSED without prejudice.”
“Plaintiff's Motion to Remand (ECF No. 6) is DENIED.”
“Defendant's Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 28) is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Plaintiff shall have thirty (30) days to file an amended complaint to the extent Plaintiff can cure the deficiencies cited herein.”
“Plaintiff's Motion is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part without prejudice. ... the Court denies the Motion for Default Judgment on the issue of damages and directs Plaintiff to provide additional information regarding Defendant's partial payment and a revised damages calculation.”
“Plaintiff's motion for a TRO is DENIED.”
Pro se prisoner Eighth Amendment deliberate-indifference suit alleging denial of wheelchair-van access. Castner did not decide the defendant's summary-judgment motion on the merits. She ordered supplemental briefing on four specific record questions and administratively terminated the motion subject to reopening. The procedural deferral illustrates her practice of staging dispositive motions and seeking further input before deciding them.
In this FTCA suit, the United States moved to dismiss under Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6), alternatively sought summary judgment on limitations, and requested a stay. Castner did not reach the merits. Invoking the court's docket-control power and Rule 15(a)(2)'s liberal amendment standard, she administratively terminated the motion without prejudice and allowed the plaintiffs to file a third amended complaint pleading their equitable-estoppel facts.
“the Court ... concludes that there are genuine issues of material fact for trial, and thus DENIES Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment.”
“Supernus' Motion in Limine (ECF No. 126) is GRANTED in part. Torrent is precluded from eliciting from its expert testimony about the absence of evidence ...”
“The Court RESERVES on deciding Torrent's First Motion in Limine (ECF No. 128). ... ADMINISTRATIVELY TERMINATE the parties' motions (ECF Nos. 126, 128, 129) pending the trial's outcome.”
“The Court RESERVES on deciding Torrent's Second Motion in Limine (ECF No. 129). ... ADMINISTRATIVELY TERMINATE the parties' motions ... pending the trial's outcome.”
“Defendants' Motions are GRANTED to the extent they seek dismissal of Plaintiff's FAC and DENIED as moot to the extent they seek dismissal of Plaintiff's initial Complaint.”
“For the foregoing reasons, and other good cause shown, Plaintiffs' Motion to Remand (ECF No. 17) is GRANTED.”
“For the reasons set forth below, and other good cause shown, Defendant's Motion is GRANTED.”
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 | 23 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 23 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 17 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 21 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 24 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 22 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 32 |
| Mar 2023 | 33 | 53 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 44 |
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 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.
How long civil cases take in this court
For the whole of U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, not for Judge Castner: 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 | 8,970 | 8.1 months |
| Closed with no court action | 370 | 4.6 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 6,266 | 5.3 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 2,317 | 14.4 months |
| Closed during trial | 17 | 36.6 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 8,970 | 8.1 months |
| Sep 2024 | 7,921 | 8.1 months |
| Sep 2023 | 8,378 | 10.3 months |
| Sep 2022 | 7,053 | 7.9 months |
| Sep 2021 | 9,064 | 9.2 months |
| Sep 2020 | 9,031 | 9.9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 10,590 | 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).
Draft for Judge Castner with the record in hand
Ezel grounds your drafting and research in this profile: what has persuaded Judge Castner, and what has not, cited to the signed orders.
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