Sarah M. Davenport
How Judge Davenport rules, drawn from 17 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Davenport
Sarah M. Davenport is a judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico. Appointed by President Joseph R. Biden, she received her commission on January 13, 2025. She earned a bachelor’s degree and a law degree from the University of New Mexico.
Judge Davenport's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Davenport, as published on the court's website (checked November 1, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
- Motions in Civil Cases ↗
- Pretrial Instructions for Civil Cases ↗
- Pretrial Instructions for Criminal Cases ↗
- Praecipe Criminal Jury Instructions ↗
- Proposed Order Continuing Trial Setting ↗
Key rules
Motions
In civil cases, a motion and supporting brief may be at most 27 double spaced pages, a response 24, and a reply 12.
“The combined length of a motion and supporting brief must not exceed 27 double spaced pages. A response must not exceed 24 double spaced pages. A reply must not exceed 12 double spaced pages.”
Motions
Each party may file one summary judgment motion and one motion in limine.
“Each party is limited to filing one motion for summary judgment and one motion in limine.”
Motions
When a summary judgment motion or motion in limine raises multiple issues, number the issues separately and respond in the same order.
“When a motion for summary judgment or motion in limine presents multiple issues, the issues shall be presented in separately numbered subsections. Any party opposing the motion shall respond to the issues in the same sequence and using the same numbering as the motion’s subsections.”
Motions
In criminal cases, file a trial continuance motion at least 48 hours before the call of the calendar to be removed from that call.
“To be removed from the Call of the Calendar schedule, all motions to continue trial should be filed no later than 48 hours prior to the call of the calendar and state the grounds for the motion in accordance with 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(7) and United States v. Toombs”
Motions
Request an extension of a criminal pretrial deadline by written motion.
“Counsel must seek leave of the Court in the form of a written motion to extend any pretrial deadline.”
Conferences
Notify the court at least seven days before a criminal pretrial conference of matters that need more preparation or hearing time.
“Parties shall notify the Court as soon as possible, but no later than 7 days before Pretrial Conference, regarding remaining matters that will require additional preparation time or time for hearing, such as the intent to call witnesses, so the Court can ensure enough time is allotted to address all remaining issues at the Pretrial Conference.”
Sealing
A motion to seal must address public access and identify case specific reasons for sealing the document.
“All motions to seal therefore must acknowledge the public’s interest in accessing court documents and describe how that interest is outweighed by the countervailing interests of the parties. All motions to seal must reference case-specific facts and must describe, with precision, the interests of the parties in sealing the document.”
Trial
In civil cases, wait for the court to set trial and the pretrial conference after the magistrate judge enters a Rule 16 scheduling order.
“Following entry of a Rule 16 Scheduling Order by the Magistrate Judge, the Court will issue an order scheduling the matter for trial and pretrial conference and setting pretrial deadlines. Parties should not contact the Court to request a trial setting.”
Trial
Submit civil trial exhibits electronically two weeks before trial.
“Exhibits must be submitted in electronic format two weeks prior to trial.”
Trial
File the criminal jury instruction praecipe and supporting memoranda at least seven days before trial, and email the proposed Word instructions to chambers.
“No later than 7 days before trial, counsel shall file the Praecipe and Memoranda on CM/ECF and submit an e-mail attaching the proposed set of instructions in Word format to [email protected].”
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 Davenport decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Scott, she denied a preliminary injunction after finding that the applicant had not shown irreparable harm.
“Plaintiff has not established irreparable harm for any of his claims.”
In DCP Operating, she distinguished the insurer’s current duty to defend from the unresolved question of indemnification.
“is GRANTED as to St. Paul’s duty to defend and DENIED as to indemnification of the Underlying Action.”
Procedural preferences
In West, Davenport denied a request to strike class allegations before the parties resolved factual disputes over their arbitration agreements.
“The Court denies Defendants’ motion as premature.”
In Mix, she allowed the prisoner to amend his complaint while keeping discovery stayed only as to the defendants’ prescreening obligations.
“The proceedings will not be entirely stayed, however, as the Court will continue to work on the case and review the existing filings.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Daubert Motion and Memorandum to Exclude Testimony of Robert K. Sall (Doc. 143) is denied”
“Daubert Motion and Memorandum to Exclude Testimony of Dorene A. Kuffer (Doc. 144) is denied”
“Motion for Summary Judgment Regarding Plaintiff’s Claims That Require a Legal Expert (Doc. 155) is denied”
“Defendants’ motion is DENIED”
“Unopposed Motion for Final Approval of Class Action Settlement, Doc. 57, is GRANTED”
“Motion for Attorney Fees, Costs, and Service Awards, Doc. 56, is GRANTED”
“motion for summary judgment is DENIED”
“motion to strike is DENIED as moot”
“request that the Court amend its Order to certify it for interlocutory appeal pursuant to § 1292(b), Doc. 51, is DENIED”
“Spartan’s Motion to Stay or Dismiss is DENIED”
“Motion for Default Judgment (Doc. 15) against Defendants Craft 1861 Craft and Aranda, jointly and severally, is GRANTED”
“Michelle Lujan Grisham’s Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED”
“Motion for Extension of Time (Doc. 5) is GRANTED”
“Motion to Proceed In Forma Pauperis. (Doc. 4) is GRANTED”
“Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Doc. 1) is GRANTED”
“Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction (Doc. 6) is DENIED”
“motion for partial summary judgment on duty to defend is GRANTED as to St. Paul’s duty to defend and DENIED”
“motion for summary judgment on breach of contract claim is denied”
“motion for conditional certification is GRANTED”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Median case duration in the sampled dockets: 82.0 days (N = 6).
Median motion-to-ruling time: 384.5 days (N = 2).
The ten sampled assignments include six civil matters and four criminal prosecutions. The civil matters span habeas, civil rights, employment, and personal injury.
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 | 9 |
| 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 | 6 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 9 | 6 |
| Sep 2025 | 19 | 10 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 7 |
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 Davenport: 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).
Draft for Judge Davenport with the record in hand
Ezel grounds your drafting and research in this profile: what has persuaded Judge Davenport, and what has not, cited to the signed orders.
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