--- title: "Frederic Block | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/frederic-block" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Frederic Block U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York - State: New York - Role: Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Adjunct professor, Touro Law School, 1992-present - Judge, District Court, E.D. New York, 1994-2005 - He also held the role of an adjunct professor at Touro Law School starting in 1992 - Clerk, Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, 1959-1961 ### Education - Artium Baccalaureus from Indiana University in 1956 and a Bachelor of Laws from Cornell Law School in 1959. - Indiana University — B.A. (1956) - Indiana University Bloomington ### Additional information - Block assumed senior status on September 1, 2005, and was succeeded by Judge Brian Cogan - On July 22, 1994, President Bill Clinton nominated Block to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, filling the seat vacated by Eugene H. Nickerson. - Private practice, Smithtown, NY, 1985-1994 - Private practice, Smithtown, New York, 1977-1979, 1981-1983, 1985-1994 - Practiced law privately in various Long Island locations from 1961 to 1994 - Private practice, Port Jefferson, NY, 1983-1985 - Private practice, Port Jefferson, New York, 1962-1968, 1974-1977, 1979-1981, 1983-1985 - Private practice, Smithtown, NY, 1981-1983 - Private practice, Port Jefferson, NY, 1979-1981 - Private practice, Smithtown, NY, 1977-1979 - Private practice, Port Jefferson, NY, 1974-1977 - Private practice, Centereach, NY, 1968-1974 - Private practice, Centereach, New York, 1968-1974 - Private practice, Port Jefferson, NY, 1962-1968 - Private practice, Patchogue, NY, 1961-1962 - Private practice, Patchogue, New York, 1961-1962 - After law school, he clerked for the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, from 1959 to 1961 - Frederic Block was born on June 6, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York, and later moved to Manhattan's Upper West Side. - Date of birth: 1934-01-01 - received his commission the following day. - Disrobed: An Inside Look at the Life and Work of a Federal Trial Judge. - During his tenure, Judge Block presided over high-profile cases, including trials involving former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin, Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff, Peter Gotti, Lemrick Nelson, and nightclub owner Peter Gatien. - He also regularly sits by designation on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals - handling both civil and criminal cases, including trial and appellate work, and even argued a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. - His career reflects a combination of legal practice, teaching, writing, and public service, highlighting his influence both on and off the bench - Birth place: Brooklyn, NY ## 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.fjc.gov/node/1377946) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377946) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377946) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/308/frederic-block/) - [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/308/frederic-block/) - [Judge Frederic Block](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1377946) - [Wikidata: Frederic Block](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5496988) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/frederic-block", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/frederic-block", "name": "Frederic Block | KnowJudges", "description": "Frederic Block, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. 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Civil and criminal sections have distinct scope and district-specific exceptions. Not Bankruptcy Court rules. [Official source](https://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/local_rules/2026-01-02%20-%20EDNY%20and%20SDNY%20Joint%20Local%20Rules%20As%20Amended.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [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.