---
title: "Deborah M. Smith | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/deborah-m-smith-alaska-us-magistrate"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-08"
---

# Deborah M. Smith

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

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska
- State: Alaska
- Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-10-02

## Summary

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

## Biography

### Professional career

- U.S. Magistrate Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Alaska from 2007 until her retirement on September 1, 2021
- Trial Attorney & Senior Litigation Counsel, U.S. Dept. of Justice - Fraud Section, 1987–1993
- Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office -, 1982–1987
- Staff Attorney, Alaska Court of Appeals, 1981–1982

### Education


### Additional information

- Retirement: Left the bench on September 1, 2021.
- Appointment: Appointed by the judges of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska in 2007 to an 8‐year renewable term.
- Assistant Public Defender, Alaska Public Defender Agency, 1978–1980
- J.D. — Northeastern Univ. — 1978
- Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, 1974–1975
- B.A. — Univ. of Florida — 1974
- Journalist, Ft.
- Clerk’s phone (during tenure): +1 (907) 677‐6256
- Civil rights screening dismissals (mixed outcomes)
- Discovery motions (granted in part when narrowly tailored)
- Motion to suppress (mixed outcomes)
- Position: U.S. Magistrate Judge; also served as Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge for the.
- Recognized in professional listings as one of the nation’s first magistrate judges and a Fellow of the Magistrate Judges Association.
- Professional affiliations: Federal Magistrate Judges Association (President)
- Habeas corpus petitions (denied)
- Motion to dismiss indictment (mostly denied)

## 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=85)
- [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=85)
- [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=85)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9013/deborah-m-smith/)
- [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)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/40)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/55)
- [cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/judicial-council/publications/AnnualReport2007.pdf)
- [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)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/55)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=85)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/40)
- [cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/judicial-council/publications/AnnualReport2007.pdf)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/40)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/40)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/55)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure)
- [www.uscourts.gov](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=85)
- [www.akd.uscourts.gov](https://www.akd.uscourts.gov/node/40)
- [cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/judicial-council/publications/AnnualReport2007.pdf)

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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.