--- title: "Eric F. Melgren | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Eric F. Melgren U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas - State: Kansas - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official judge-specific and circuitwide procedural guidance has been located for this profile. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, D. Kansas, 2008-present - Eric Franklin Melgren is a Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Kansas, having assumed senior status on September 1, 2025 - Service: Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas (2008–2025) - U.S. attorney for the District of Kansas, 2002-2008 - Law clerk, Hon. Frank G. Theis, U.S. District Court, District of Kansas, 1985-1987 ### Education - Washburn University — J.D. (1985) - Wichita State University — B.A. (1979) ### Additional information - Chief Judge: held the role of Chief Judge from December 1, 2021, to September 1, 2025 - Appointed: Nominated by President George W. Bush on July 23, 2008, to replace Judge Monti Belot - Private practice, Wichita, KS, 1987-2002 - Born 1956 in Minneola, Kansas. - Date of birth: 1956-01-01 - Melgren has held the role of Chairman of the United Way of the Plains, President of Wichita State University’s Alumni Association, and leadership roles in the Federal Bar Association and the Wesley E. Brown Inn of Court - Birth place: Minneola, KS ## 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 ### courtroom technology Scope: judge specific Judge-specific source Evidence excerpt: C. Correct Naming Convention for Electronic Exhibits (a) General Format: -_. NOTE: All exhibits should be described as you have described them on the filed exhibit list and how they are described when presenting them as evidence. (b) Maximum Number of Characters: The maximum number of characters that may be used… [EFM-JERS-Instructions-for-Counsel.pdf](https://www.ksd.uscourts.gov/sites/ksd/files/EFM-JERS-Instructions-for-Counsel.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-24 ### 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/1392811) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1392811) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1392811) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2211/eric-f-melgren/) - [EFM-JERS-Instructions-for-Counsel.pdf](https://www.ksd.uscourts.gov/sites/ksd/files/EFM-JERS-Instructions-for-Counsel.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) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2211/eric-f-melgren/) - [Wikidata: Eric F. Melgren](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5386462) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren", "name": "Eric F. Melgren | KnowJudges", "description": "Eric F. Melgren, U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-09", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren#judge", "name": "Eric F. 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Melgren", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/eric-f-melgren" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 133 | 3 | Not available | 3 | | 2y | 284 | 60 | 4.3 | 60 | | 5y | 699 | 450 | 6.9 | 450 | | 10y | 1505 | 1252 | 7.2 | 1252 | 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.