--- title: "Elizabeth A. Stafford | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-a-stafford-michigan-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Elizabeth A. Stafford U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan - State: Michigan - 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 - Merit‐selected U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, appointed in 2014 and serving in Courtroom 642, Theodore Levin U.S. Courthouse, Detroit, MI - Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Eastern District of Michigan, 2002-04–2014-11 - Before joining the federal judiciary, Stafford was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan from 2002, serving in the General Crimes Unit, Controlled Substance Unit, and Public Corruption Unit. - Law Clerk, U.S. Attorney's Office - Eastern District of Michigan, 1998-08–2002-04 - Career law clerk to Hon - Her legal career began in private practice at Goodman, Eden, Millender & Bedrosian ### Education ### Additional information - Magistrate, District Court, E.D. Michigan, 2014-present - In 2013, she received the Unsung Hero Award from the State Bar of Michigan - Practitioner, Goodman, Eden, Millender & Bedrosian, through 1998 - J.D. — Wayne State Univ. — 1993 - B.A. — Michigan State Univ. — 1989 - handling personal injury, civil rights, and other matters. - Judge Stafford has handled a variety of matters under 28 U.S.C.. 636(c), including summary judgment, motions to compel, motions to amend, and Social Security appeals. - She previously prosecuted federal drug and gun cases and worked in the Public Corruption Unit - Her rulings often emphasize clear, factual allegations and procedural compliance - She has held office on the Diversity Committee for the Eastern District of Michigan Federal Bar Association, the State Bar of Michigan’s U.S. Courts Committee, and the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee. - Birth place: Detroit, MI ## 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=55) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=55) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=55) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9313/elizabeth-a-stafford/) - [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/9313/elizabeth-a-stafford/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Elizabeth A. Stafford](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9313/elizabeth-a-stafford/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Elizabeth A. Stafford](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-a-stafford-michigan-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/elizabeth-a-stafford-michigan-us-magistrate", "name": "Elizabeth A. Stafford | KnowJudges", "description": "Elizabeth A. Stafford, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. 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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-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.