--- title: "Brian Matthew Morris | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/brian-matthew-morris" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Brian Matthew Morris U.S. District Court for the District of Montana · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Montana - State: Montana - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, D. Montana, 2013-present - Judge: U.S. District Court for the District of Montana (2013–present) - He received his federal district court commission on December 17, 2013, and became chief judge in March 2020 - Justice, Montana Supreme Court, 2005-2013 - Solicitor: Montana Department of Justice (2001–2005) - Law clerk, Hon. William H. Rehnquist, Supreme Court of the United States, 1993-1994 - William H. Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1993–1994) - Law clerk, Hon. John T. Noonan, Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 1992-1993 - American attorney and jurist who currently serves as Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Montana - His career included federal judicial clerkships, international claims work, private practice, and service on the Montana Supreme Court ### Education - Stanford University — J.D. (1992) - Brian Morris earned graduate degrees at Stanford University, including his law degree in 1992. - Stanford University — B.A. (1987) - Stanford University — M.A. (1987) ### Additional information - Chief Judge: Since March 19, 2020 - Judge, 2014-2014 - Solicitor, State of Montana, 2001-2005 - Practitioner, 2004-2004 - Senior legal officer, United Nations Compensation Commission, 2000-2001 - Private practice, Bozeman, MT, 1995-2000 - Legal assistant, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, 1994-1995 - Born September 5, 1963, in Butte, Montana. - Date of birth: 1963-09-05 - Butte Central Catholic High School - held the role of Chief Judge during a period of significant federal judicial activity in Montana - Only member of the Montana State Bar to have been a law clerk to a U.S. Supreme Court Justice - Birth place: Butte, MT ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394331) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394331) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394331) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2315/brian-matthew-morris/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2315/brian-matthew-morris/) - [Wikidata: Brian Morris](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4964814) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/brian-matthew-morris", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/brian-matthew-morris", "name": "Brian Matthew Morris | KnowJudges", "description": "Brian Matthew Morris, U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. 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Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.