Paul Kohler
How Judge Kohler rules, drawn from 26 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Kohler
Paul Kohler has served as a United States magistrate judge for the District of Utah since 2019 and has served full time since 2022. He earned a bachelor’s degree and a law degree from Brigham Young University. His chambers are in St. George, Utah.
Judge Kohler's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Kohler, 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
Filing
Email proposed orders directly to chambers in editable word processing format as well as attaching them to the motion.
“In addition to attaching a copy of the order to the motion, a copy of all proposed orders must be directly e-mailed to chambers at the following address: [email protected]. Proposed orders e-mailed to chambers must be editable and in word processing format.”
Filing
Provide courtesy copies of dispositive motion papers and bound Social Security administrative records.
“Courtesy copies are required for dispositive motions and associated memoranda and exhibits. Copies of administrative records in Social Security Administration appeals are required and must be bound in a three-ring binder.”
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 Kohler decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
In Diamond G Rodeos v. Gifford, Kohler recommended default judgment and dismissal of counterclaims as Rule 37 sanctions after the defendant repeatedly failed to comply with discovery orders; the district judge adopted the recommendation.
“The Report and Recommendation recommended default judgment against Gifford and the dismissal of Gifford's counterclaims. ... based on his failures to properly participate, provide relevant discovery, or comply with court orders.”
Cautions
In Desai v. Garfield School District, Kohler recommended dismissing the amended complaint with prejudice because its allegations did not state plausible claims and a prior settlement agreement barred the remaining employment claims.
“Judge Kohler correctly determined that the Amended Complaint provides only conclusory allegations without any supporting facts to state a plausible claim.”
In a vehicle-collision case, Judge Kohler denied spoliation sanctions where the movants showed neither destruction by the plaintiff nor actual prejudice, and he required more than speculative harm.
“In short, Defendants provide no evidence of any actual harm, only speculation.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“The Report and Recommendation issued by United States Magistrate Judge Paul Kohler on August 13, 2024 recommends that Defendants' Motion to Dismiss be granted and the case be dismissed with prejudice. ... the Report and Recommendation is ADOPTED in its entirety and this case is DISMISSED with prejudice.”
“On September 26, 2025, Magistrate Judge Paul Kohler filed a Report & Recommendation ('R & R') recommending granting the Motions to Dismiss filed by Defendants Darin Adams and Matthew Topham, and Chad Dotson, respectively. ... With no objections, the R & R was adopted in full.”
“The Report and Recommendation recommended default judgment against Gifford and the dismissal of Gifford's counterclaims. ... The Report and Recommendation was adopted and default judgment was entered against Gifford based on his failures to properly participate, provide relevant discovery, or comply with court orders.”
“Judge Kohler, seeing no response to the previous order, issued a Report and Recommendation concluding that this action should be dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. ... the Court hereby ADOPTS the Report and Recommendation (ECF No. 10) and DISMISSES Plaintiff's complaint and this action.”
“recommending this action be dismissed because Plaintiff Milan Michael Kotevski has refused to pay a filing fee, or seek and obtain leave to proceed in forma pauperis under 28 U.S.C. 1915. Judge Kohler also recommends the Court impose filing restrictions ... the Court overrules Mr. Kotevski's objections and adopts the recommendation ... ADOPTS the Report and Recommendation (ECF No. 21) and DISMISSES Plaintiff's action”
“The Court affirms the administrative ruling.”
“The Court affirms the administrative ruling.”
“Default judgment is therefore not appropriate at this time, and the Court declines to enter such judgment against the Ramsdell Defendants”
“the Court denies Defendants' Motion to Strike and denies without prejudice Plaintiff's Motion for Sanctions.”
“both Motions are granted, which renders moot Defendants' Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings.”
“As such, the Motions to Amend are denied.”
“ORDERED that Plaintiff's Motion to Strike (Docket No. 43) is DENIED.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
As the resident magistrate judge in the Southern Region at St. George, Judge Kohler handles a docket dominated by consent Social Security disability appeals that he decides on the merits, often after oral argument, alongside other civil cases and referred matters. This describes caseload composition, not motion outcomes.
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 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2022 | 1 | 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 Utah, not for Judge Kohler: 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 | 1,120 | 8.5 months |
| Closed with no court action | 343 | 7 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 764 | 9 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 3 | not reported |
| Closed during trial | 10 | 59 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 1,120 | 8.5 months |
| Sep 2024 | 1,141 | 9.3 months |
| Sep 2023 | 1,035 | 10.6 months |
| Sep 2022 | 1,092 | 12.3 months |
| Sep 2021 | 1,128 | 12.7 months |
| Sep 2020 | 951 | 10.4 months |
| Sep 2019 | 1,085 | 9.7 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 Kohler with the record in hand
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