---
title: "Carlton Wayne Reeves | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/carlton-wayne-reeves"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-09"
---

# Carlton Wayne Reeves

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi · U.S. District Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi
- State: Mississippi
- 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, S.D. Mississippi, 2010-present
- Before his judicial appointment, Reeves was a partner at Pigott Reeves Johnson & Minor, P.A. (2001–2010) and an associate at Phelps Dunbar LLP (1991–1995).
- Assistant U.S. attorney, Southern District of Mississippi, 1995-2001
- Chief of the Civil Division, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi (1995–2001)
- Staff attorney, Mississippi Supreme Court, 1990-1991
- Law clerk, Hon. Reuben V. Anderson, Mississippi Supreme Court, 1989-1990
- United States District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi and the Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission
- The district judge in Dobbs v

### Education

- Jackson State University — B.A. (1986)
- University of Virginia School of Law

### Additional information

- On April 28, 2010, President Barack Obama nominated Reeves to replace William H. Barbour Jr. on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.
- He was confirmed by the Senate on December 19, 2010 by voice vote and began service on December 20, 2010.
- Private practice, Jackson, MS, 2001-2010
- Private practice, Jackson, MS, 1991-1995
- Born April 11, 1964, Fort Hood, Texas.
- Date of birth: 1964-01-01
- He has also served on boards of the ACLU of Mississippi, the Mississippi Center for Justice, and the Magnolia Bar Association
- Birth place: Fort Hood, TX

## 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/1393566)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393566)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1393566)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2686/carlton-wayne-reeves/)
- [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/2686/carlton-wayne-reeves/)
- [Wikidata: Carlton W. Reeves](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5043076)

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## Federal civil docket activity

Dataset updated through 2026-06-30.

| Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| 1y | 250 | 2 | Not available | 2 |
| 2y | 454 | 64 | 2.7 | 64 |
| 5y | 3146 | 515 | 6.2 | 515 |
| 10y | 4191 | 1553 | 7.4 | 1553 |

Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/


## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. 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.
