--- title: "Dale Alan Drozd | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/dale-alan-drozd" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Dale Alan Drozd U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California - State: California - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-08-16 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, E.D. California, 2015-present - United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California, appointed in 2015 by President Barack Obama and confirmed by - U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District of California (1997–2015) - 1980–1982: Law Clerk: Judge Lawrence K. Karlton, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California - Law Clerk, District Court, E.D. California, 1980-1982 ### Education - University of California-Los Angeles — J.D. (1980) - San Diego State University — B.A. (1977) - University of Southern California ### Additional information - 5, 2015 (69–21 vote) - Chief Magistrate, District Court, E.D. California, 2011-2015 - Magistrate, District Court, E.D. California, 1997-2015 - 12, 2014, to replace Anthony W. Ishii (senior status) - Private practice, Sacramento, CA, 1986-1997 - Private Practice: San Francisco (1982–1985) Sacramento (1986–1997) - Private practice, San Francisco, CA, 1982-1985 - Date of birth: 1955-01-01 - Senate confirmation: Oct. - Judicial commission issued: Nov. - Nominated Nov. - Servite High School - held the role of Chief Magistrate Judge for four years before becoming a district judge - Judge Drozd presides over cases in the Eastern District of California, the largest of California’s four federal judicial districts, covering from the Oregon border to the Tehachapis and from the Coastal Range to the Nevada border. - His chambers are in Sacramento, and he uses Courtroom 4, 15th floor of the Robert T. Matsui United States Courthouse. - Has a long-standing career in both private practice and federal judicial service - Birth place: Long Beach, CA ## 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.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/judges/all-judges/) - [Official roster](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/judges/all-judges/) - [caed.uscourts.gov judicial profile or roster](https://www.caed.uscourts.gov/caednew/index.cfm/judges/all-judges/) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8572/dale-alan-drozd/) - [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/8572/dale-alan-drozd/) - [Wikidata: Dale A. Drozd](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16186647) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8572/dale-alan-drozd/) - [Wikidata: Dale A. Drozd](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16186647) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/dale-alan-drozd", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/dale-alan-drozd", "name": "Dale Alan Drozd | KnowJudges", "description": "Dale Alan Drozd, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. 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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.