Nadia S. Medrano
How Judge Medrano rules, drawn from 12 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Medrano
Nadia S. Medrano became a United States Magistrate Judge in the McAllen Division of the Southern District of Texas on January 7, 2021. Before joining the court, she served as an assistant federal public defender in McAllen from 2007 to 2020.
Judge Medrano's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Medrano, as published on the court's website (checked October 8, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
Key rules
Contacting chambers
Do not address substantive issues in letters because they are not docketed; file copies of case-related letters through CM/ECF.
“Do not address any substantive issues in letter form as they are not docketed. f. All questions regarding any criminal matters should be directed to Chambers at (956) 618-8080. g. The parties must file copies of all case-related letters to the Court via CM/ECF.”
Filing
File a paper courtesy copy with the district clerk for any submission over 50 pages.
“Parties are reminded that any submission - including motions, briefs, and attachments - that is greater than 50 pages in length requires a courtesy hard copy to be filed with the Distict Clerk’s Office”
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 8, 2026).
How Judge Medrano decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Chay Jr. v. Montiel, she recommended granting Wells Fargo Bank's motion to dismiss on pleading and limitations grounds and recommended against leave to amend. The district judge later adopted that recommendation.
“Judge Medrano made findings and conclusions and recommended that Defendant Wells Fargo Bank’s Motion to Dismiss, (Dkt. No. 47), be granted ... Judge Medrano further recommended that this Court not grant Plaintiff leave to amend his claims against Wells Fargo Bank.”
Procedural preferences
In Chay v. Montiel, Medrano recommended denying two motions for default judgment. District Judge Tipton reviewed the plaintiff’s objections de novo, adopted her recommendation, and denied both motions.
“Plaintiff’s Motion for Entry of Default Judgment, (Dkt. No. 15), is DENIED; and (2) Plaintiff’s Motion for Default Judgment, (Dkt. No. 17), is DENIED.”
Cautions
In Chay v. Montiel, District Judge Tipton reviewed objections to Medrano’s recommendation to dismiss Cameron County, adopted the recommendation in full, and granted the county’s motion to dismiss.
“Finding no error, the Court accepts the M&R and adopts it as the opinion of the Court.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“The Government’s Motion for Order of Immediate Possession, (Dkt. No. 63), is GRANTED”
“Plaintiff’s Motion for Entry of Default Judgment, (Dkt. No. 15), is DENIED; and (2) Plaintiff’s Motion for Default Judgment, (Dkt. No. 17), is DENIED.”
“Defendant Cameron County’s Motion to Dismiss, (Dkt. No. 45), is GRANTED; and (2) Defendant Cameron County is DISMISSED from this civil action.”
“Defendant Wells Fargo Bank’s Motion to Dismiss, (Dkt. No. 47), is GRANTED; and (2) Defendant Wells Fargo Bank is DISMISSED from this civil action.”
“Plaintiff’s ‘Motion to Certify [the] Case as Complex Litigation,’ (Dkt. No. 67), is DENIED.”
“Respondent’s Motion for Summary Judgment should be GRANTED, that Petitioner’s Motion for Judgment as Matter of Law should be DENIED, that a certificate of appealability should be DENIED, and that Petitioner’s Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 should be DISMISSED”
“Petitioner’s Motion for Judgment as Matter of Law should be DENIED”
“Petitioner’s Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 should be DISMISSED and that a certificate of appealability should be DENIED as unnecessary.”
“the ‘Petition for Return of Personal Property in U.S. Currencies’ (Docket No. 1) should be DENIED and that this action should be DISMISSED for failure to prosecute.”
Medrano recommended dismissing this removed foreclosure action for failure to prosecute after the plaintiff missed two hearings, failed to maintain a current address, and otherwise stopped communicating with the court. The recommendation states: "For the foregoing reasons, the undersigned respectfully recommends that this civil action be DISMISSED for failure to prosecute." District Judge Drew B. Tipton adopted the recommendation in full on February 27, 2026. This was a sua sponte procedural recommendation, not a decision on the defendants' pending dismissal motion.
“be DENIED, and that this action be DISMISSED as moot.”
“motions for summary judgment (Docket Nos. 72-74) be DENIED as moot.”
“Respondent’s ‘Motion to Dismiss’ (Docket No. 7) be GRANTED”
“Petitioner’s Writ of Habeas Corpus Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 (Docket No. 1) be DENIED”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
McAllen Division referral magistrate. The record spans 28 U.S.C. 2254 and 2241 habeas recommendations, pro se civil-rights/RICO complaint recommendations (Rule 12(b)(6) dismissals, default-judgment denials, procedural motions), federal land-condemnation immediate-possession recommendations, and Rule 41(g) property-return petitions. Not a complete caseload census.
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 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2024 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| Mar 2021 | 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 Southern District of Texas, not for Judge Medrano: 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 | 5,742 | 7.6 months |
| Closed with no court action | 2,442 | 6 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 2,371 | 7.4 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 871 | 11.4 months |
| Closed during trial | 58 | 31.6 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 5,742 | 7.6 months |
| Sep 2024 | 5,086 | 7.5 months |
| Sep 2023 | 4,762 | 7.9 months |
| Sep 2022 | 4,595 | 8.8 months |
| Sep 2021 | 4,745 | 8.8 months |
| Sep 2020 | 5,009 | 8.1 months |
| Sep 2019 | 5,233 | 7.5 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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Ezel grounds your drafting and research in this profile: what has persuaded Judge Medrano, and what has not, cited to the signed orders.
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