Gregory B. Wormuth
How Judge Wormuth rules, drawn from 46 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Wormuth
Gregory B. Wormuth has served as a United States Magistrate Judge for the District of New Mexico since May 2009, with chambers in Las Cruces. He was reappointed to another eight-year term effective May 2025 and has served as the district's chief magistrate judge.
Judge Wormuth's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Wormuth, 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.
- Rules and Courtroom Decorum for All Cases ↗
- Procedures for Civil Discovery and Settlement Matters ↗
- Procedures for Civil Consent Cases ↗
- Preliminary Jury Instructions ↗
- Stock Jury Instructions ↗
Key rules
Contacting chambers
Copy opposing counsel on emails you initiate with Wormuth’s court.
“Opposing counsel must be copied on all email communications that counsel initiate with the Court.”
Motions
Even with a stipulation, seek Wormuth’s approval by motion for a filing extension longer than ten days.
“Even if stipulated, parties seeking an extension in excess of ten (10) days for any filing deadline must file a Motion to Extend with the Court by the day of the original deadline.”
Conferences
Arrange an interpreter for a Wormuth settlement conference when a participant needs one.
“The Court does not provide interpreters for settlement conferences. If a participant requires an interpreter, counsel must ensure one is present.”
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).
How Judge Wormuth decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
In O'Neill's prisoner civil-rights case, Wormuth recommended summary judgment for the defendants because O'Neill had not exhausted administrative remedies for the claims as the PLRA required.
“the Court should grant the Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment on the basis that Plaintiff Daniel O’Neill failed to exhaust administrative remedies as to all of the claims presented, as the Prison Litigation Reform Act (‘PLRA’), 42 U.S.C. § 1997(e)(a), requires.”
In Borzoni, Wormuth recommended dismissal without prejudice after the Social Security claimant missed the deadline for a motion to reverse or remand; he gave the claimant another 14 days to file a substantive motion.
“the motion ‘must identify the issues on appeal and argue why reversal or remand is appropriate.’”
In a roof-damage expert dispute, the court allowed causation testimony relevant to coverage but excluded a repair-cost estimate that lacked a method and supporting cost data. A party offering a damages expert should disclose the basis for pricing, not just a bottom-line figure.
“Mr. Ingo does not explain any methodology for how he arrived at his conclusion”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“I recommend that Defendants’ motion for summary judgment, (doc. 61), be GRANTED as to Plaintiff’s § 1983 claims and those claims be DISMISSED without prejudice.”
“recommended the following: (i) granting Defendants Blaine Rennie's and Sergeant Burns' Amended Rule 12(b)(1) Motion to Dismiss Based on Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction ... all claims against these Defendants are dismissed without prejudice; and (viii) the Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint ... is hereby stricken as improperly filed, and leave to amend is denied as futile.”
“granting Defendants Lisa Keyes', Stephanie Legaretta', Lee Whitis', and Anna Martinez' Motion to Dismiss and for Summary Judgment ... in favor of the Department of Homeland Security”
Sua sponte dismissal without prejudice for failure to prosecute, after the pro se plaintiff filed no merits motion to reverse/remand despite an order to show cause and a further opportunity. Not a party motion; excluded from motion statistics.
“the Court agrees that the ALJ committed no reversible error and adopts Magistrate Judge Wormuth's PFRD ... (v) Plaintiff's Motion to Reverse and Remand, filed July 29, 2019 (Doc. 22), is granted in part and denied in part; (vi) the Court remands the case to the Social Security Administration for proceedings before a properly appointed ALJ.”
“1. Judge Wormuth's PFRD (Doc. 30) and Clarification (Doc. 34) are ADOPTED; 2. Plaintiff Objections (Doc. 31) and Objections to Clarification (Doc. 35) are OVERRULED; 3. Plaintiff's Motion to Remand (Doc. 25) is DENIED; and 4. This action is DISMISSED with prejudice and a Final Judgement will be entered.”
“The Court adopts in part and rejects in part the Proposed Findings and Recommended Disposition, filed February 12, 2014 (Doc. 27). The Ruidoso Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment on Plaintiff's Complaint for Violation of Civil Rights, Damages, and for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief and Memorandum of Law in Support Thereof, filed October 14, 2013 (Doc. 16), is granted in part and denied in part.”
“IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Magistrate Judge's Proposed Findings and Recommended Disposition (doc. 15) is adopted. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus Under 28 U.S.C. Section 2241 (doc. 3) is DENIED.”
“For the foregoing reasons, the Archdiocese Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Counts IX, X, XIII and XIV of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint (doc. 5) is GRANTED. Counts IX, X, and XIII are DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE and Count XIV against the Archdiocese Defendants is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“On October 18, 2024, the Court granted Defendant Landau's Motion to Dismiss, dismissing Plaintiff's Vicarious Liability claim (Count XI) with prejudice and Negligence/Premises Liability claim without prejudice.”
“Having found Plaintiff's Motion to for Leave to File His Third Amended Complaint for Damages for Violations of Civil Rights, Title IX, and Other Tortious Conduct (doc. 112) futile on all relevant claims, IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Motion is DENIED.”
“Having given Plaintiff an opportunity to amend and advising him that, should it be denied, the remaining claims against Defendant Landau would be dismissed with prejudice, (see doc. 111 at 25), IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's Negligence/Premises Liability claim (Count XII) against Defendant Landau is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE.”
“Defendant Chavez's Motion for Summary Judgment (doc. 127) is GRANTED as to Count II, and DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE as to Count VI, to be refiled after the parties have engaged in additional discovery.”
“The Archdiocese Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment on Count VIII (doc. 131) is DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE to be refiled after the parties have engaged in additional discovery.”
“The Court DENIES Plaintiff's Motion to Defer Consideration of Motion for Summary Judgment and Permit Deposition Pursuant to Rule 56(D) and Declaration of Unavailability of Facts to Support Opposition, doc. 71, and GRANTS Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment and Qualified Immunity, doc. 46, as to Plaintiff's Section 1983 claims. The Court DENIES Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment and Qualified Immunity, id., as to Plaintiff's state law claims based upon a declination of supplemental jurisdiction and REMANDS this case to the Third Judicial District Court, Dona Ana County, New Mexico, for further proceedings.”
“The Court DENIES Plaintiff's Motion to Defer Consideration of Motion for Summary Judgment and Permit Deposition Pursuant to Rule 56(D) and Declaration of Unavailability of Facts to Support Opposition, doc. 71”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median case duration in the sampled dockets: 505 days (N = 8).
By party consent, Judge Wormuth enters final decisions in Social Security disability appeals. He also handles criminal duty in the Las Cruces border division, including immigration petty offenses, and writes recommendations in FLSA, FTCA, personal-injury, medical-malpractice, civil-rights, and alien-detainee habeas cases. This describes the composition of his work, not a grant rate.
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 | 0 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2025 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2023 | 7 | 1 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 1 |
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2020 | 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 United States District Court for the District of New Mexico, not for Judge Wormuth: 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 | 908 | 8.2 months |
| Closed with no court action | 150 | 4.1 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 511 | 7 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 242 | 13.8 months |
| Closed during trial | 5 | not reported |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 908 | 8.2 months |
| Sep 2024 | 918 | 8 months |
| Sep 2023 | 835 | 10.6 months |
| Sep 2022 | 973 | 11.7 months |
| Sep 2021 | 909 | 9.6 months |
| Sep 2020 | 957 | 9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 965 | 9.6 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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