--- title: "Janis Van Meerveld | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/janis-van-meerveld-louisiana-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Janis Van Meerveld U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - State: Louisiana - 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 - The Chief Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, a position she has held since 2016 - Chief Magistrate Judge; appointed Jan 2023 to Magistrate Judges Advisory Group to Administrative Office of U.S. Courts as Fifth Circuit representative through Dec 2025 ### Education - Tulane University Law School — Law — J.D. (1987) - Newcomb College of Tulane University — B.A. (1984) ### Additional information - Associate and later Partner — Adams and Reese LLP - description: 27 years at firm; head of Labor and Employment team; chair of Recruiting Committee; member of Diversity Committee; initially practiced maritime law and general insurance defense, later specialized in labor and employment, including class actions, ERISA, and Directors and Officers liability; chair of New Orleans-based ABA/EEOC Liaison Committee - 1989 to 2016 - Chief Magistrate Judge, Division 1 - Judge van Meerveld is known for encouraging status conferences to resolve discovery disputes efficiently, while also supporting motion practice when necessary. - Moot Court Board, Oralist on Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court team - Post‐judicial service: Active in bar associations; co‐founded and chaired the New Orleans Federal Bar Association’s Justice Camp; co‐edited The Advocate magazine; coordinated legal programming; regularly presents on harassment, discrimination, and implicit bias ## 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=40) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=40) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=40) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9272/janis-van-meerveld/) - [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/9272/janis-van-meerveld/) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://www.laed.uscourts.gov/judges/janis-van-meerveld-louisiana-us-magistrate) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://register.lsucle.org/21LE/speaker/240158/janis-van-meerveld) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://www.laed.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/pdfs/Notice%20van%20Meerveld%20Selected.pdf) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://www.fedbar.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/AM24-Speaker-Bios.pdf) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9272/janis-van-meerveld/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/janis-van-meerveld-louisiana-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/janis-van-meerveld-louisiana-us-magistrate", "name": "Janis Van Meerveld | KnowJudges", "description": "Janis Van Meerveld, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. 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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-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.