---
title: "David M. Cohen | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/david-m-cohen-maine-us-magistrate"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-08"
---

# David M. Cohen

U.S. District Court for the District of Maine · U.S. Magistrate Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Maine
- State: Maine
- Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-29

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Biography

### Professional career

- David M. Cohen is a judge on the Oakland County 6th Circuit Court in Michigan, presiding over the civil and criminal divisions, appointed in 2022 and re‐elected that same year
- Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, 1967–1968 (to Frank Coffin)
- Administrative Law Judge in general adjudication
- Position: Judge, Oakland County Circuit Court (6th Circuit), Civil/Criminal Division
- Managing Administrative Law Judge with the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules (Detroit), supervising 21 ALJs in unemployment and MERC matters

### Education

- He obtained a B.A. and J.D. from Wayne State University and was admitted to the Michigan Bar in 1996
- Bowdoin College — Government — B.A.
- Boston College — J.D.

### Additional information

- Magistrate, District Court, D. Maine, 1988-present
- In 2025, Cohen received the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Champion of Justice Award from the Jewish Bar Association of Michigan
- Practitioner, Petrocelli, Cohen, Erhler & Cox, through 1988
- Date of birth: 1942
- Practitioner, Wernick & Flaherty
- Practitioner, Berman & Berman
- Birth place: Manchester, NH

## 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.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=3)
- [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=3)
- [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=3)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9304/david-m-cohen/)
- [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/9304/david-m-cohen/)
- [BR/MAG Judge Database: David M. Cohen](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9304/david-m-cohen/)
- [BR/MAG Judge Database: David M. Cohen](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json)

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## 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.
