John George Koeltl at a glance
- Current role
- Judge
- Jurisdiction
- New York · Federal
- Judicial service
- Active
John George Koeltl
Judge · U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Service record and verification
Judicial service and assignments
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York · Judge · Active · August 10, 1994–present · Assignment source ↗
Appointment and verification
- Appointment method
- Presidential appointment with Senate confirmation
- Appointing authority
- William J. Clinton
- Source authority
- Federal Judicial Center Biographical Directory
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Biography
Professional career
- Judge, District Court, S.D. New York, 1994-present
- United States district judge for the Southern District of New York, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1994 and still serving
- Law clerk, Hon. Potter Stewart, Supreme Court of the United States, 1972-1973
- Law clerk, Hon. Edward Weinfeld, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 1971-1972
- He held the role of law clerk to Judge Edward Weinfeld (S.D.N.Y.) and later to Justice Potter Stewart of the U.S. Supreme Court
- He then practiced law in New York, becoming a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton
Education
- Harvard University — J.D. (1971)
- Harvard Law School in, where he edited the Harvard Law Review — J.D. (1971)
- Georgetown University — B.A. (1967)
Additional information
- President Clinton nominated Koeltl on April 26, 1994 to replace Judge Shirley Wohl Kram.
- Private practice, New York City, 1975-1994
- From 1973 to 1974, Koeltl was an Assistant Special Prosecutor for the Watergate Special Prosecution Force.
- Date of birth: 1945-01-01
- Regis High School
- He was active in professional organizations, including the American Bar Association and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York
- Koeltl is an Adjunct Professor of Law at New York University School of Law and has served on the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules and the Judicial Conference’s Committee on Court Administration and Case Management
- Birth place: New York, NY
Applicable Court Rules & Procedures
Remote appearances
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.
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 ↗
Recording and broadcasting
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.
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 ↗
Published courtroom rules
Judge and named-part rules
Published judge / part rules (30 excerpts)
See document heading and cited passage; do not apply outside the issuing part or proceeding.
Official rules document ↗ · Collected 2026-10-27
Communications with chambers
A. Letters. Except as otherwise provided below, communications with the Court should be by letter, with copies simultaneously delivered to all counsel. Letters should be filed electronically on ECF, unless there is a request to file a letter under seal or a letter contains sensitive or confidential information. For instructions on how to file electronically under seal, see Section 6 below. Courtesy copies are no longer accepted. Whether filed electronically or not, letters may not exceed 3 pages in length. Letters solely between parties or their counsel or otherwise not addressed to the Court may not be filed on ECF or otherwise sent to the Court (except as exhibits to an otherwise properly filed document).
Source page 1Adjournments
C. Requests for Adjournments or Extensions of Time. All requests for adjournment or extensions of time must be made in writing and filed on ECF as letter-motions. Courtesy copies are no longer accepted. If a request contains sensitive or confidential information, it may be submitted by fax or mail in lieu of being filed electronically. The letter- motion must state (1) the original date, (2) the number of previous requests for adjournment or extension, (3) whether these previous requests were granted or denied, and (4) whether the adversary consents, and, if not, the reasons given by the adversary for refusing to consent. If the requested adjournment or extension affects any other scheduled dates, a proposed Revised Scheduling Order (reflecting only business days) must be attached. If the request is for an adjournment of a court appearance, absent an emergency, it shall be made at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled appearance.
Source page 1Adjournments
D. Letter-Motions. Letter-motions may be filed via ECF if they comply with the S.D.N.Y. Local Rules and the S.D.N.Y. Electronic Case Filing Rules and Instructions. In particular, all requests for adjournments, extensions, and pre-motion conferences (including pre- motion conferences with respect to discovery disputes) should be filed as letter-motions. Courtesy copies are no longer accepted. Letter-motions, together with any related exhibits, should not exceed 3 pages in length.
Source page 2Communications with chambers
E. Sentencing Submissions. Except for submissions to be filed under seal, every document in a sentencing submission, including letters, must be filed on ECF. Parties should assure that all sentencing submissions filed on ECF are redacted as necessary, and comply with Rule 49.1 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Letters should be grouped and filed together with attachments to a single document marked SENTENCING MEMORANDUM with the caption and docket number clearly indicated. The defendant is responsible for filing all letters submitted on behalf of the defendant, including those from friends and relatives. The Government is responsible for filing all letters from victims. Courtesy copies of all sentencing submissions should be provided to the Court promptly after they are filed. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, courtesy copies should be submitted via email to koeltlnysdchambers@nysd.uscourts.gov.
Source page 2Motion practice
B. Pre-Motion Conferences in Civil Cases. For discovery motions, follow Local Civil Rule 37.2. For motions other than discovery motions, a pre-motion conference with the court is required only before making a motion to dismiss, motion to amend or a motion for summary judgment.
Source page 3Communications with chambers
C. Courtesy Copies. The moving party should furnish to Chambers one courtesy copies of all the motion papers (including papers in opposition to the motion) after the motion has been fully briefed. Each submission related to the motion should be filed on the docket promptly after service, but the full set of courtesy copies should be furnished to chambers only once the motion is fully briefed. Courtesy copies of pleadings, marked as such, shall be submitted to Chambers as soon as practicable after filing. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, courtesy copies should be mailed to Chambers and submitted via email to koeltlnysdchambers@nysd.uscourts.gov. The moving party should note that for documents that are too lengthy to be stapled, the Court has a preference for binding on the side. Velo binding is discouraged. Parties are encouraged to print declarations with lengthy exhibits double sided, but memoranda of law should be single sided.
Source page 3Motion practice
D. Memoranda of Law in Civil Cases. Unless prior permission has been granted, memoranda of law in support of and in opposition to motions are limited to 7,000 words or fewer, and reply memoranda are limited to 2,800 words or fewer. All memoranda shall contain a certificate signed by counsel stating the number of words in the brief and certifying that the brief complies with these formatting rules. All memoranda shall contain a table of contents and a table of authorities. The cover page, certification of compliance, table of contents, and table of authorities shall not be included in any word count. All memoranda should be double spaced, in legible font, and with reasonable margins. All footnotes must be double spaced and in legible font.
Source page 3Motion practice
Parties should not omit statements of facts from memoranda submitted in connection with summary judgment motions; Local Rule 56.1 statements and supporting affidavits are not substitutes for statements of facts and should not be incorporated by reference.
Source page 3Motion practice
F. Filing of Motion Papers. Motion papers shall be filed and served on ECF for all ECF cases. In non-ECF cases, such as Social Security cases and cases in which there is a Pro Se litigant, motion papers shall be filed in the Clerk’s Office promptly after service.
Source page 3Motion practice
H. Motion Schedule. Unless otherwise stipulated by the Court, the schedule for responses and replies to civil motions shall be that established by Local Civil Rule 6.1.
Source page 4Trial exhibits and witnesses
In accordance with the Scheduling Order adopted by the Court, in all civil cases, the parties shall submit to the Court for its approval a joint pretrial order, which shall include the
Source page 4Trial exhibits and witnesses
6. A statement as to whether or not all parties have consented to trial of the case by a magistrate judge (without identifying which parties have or have not so consented).
Source page 4Discovery
Parties in FLSA actions that are not collective actions should abide by the Initial Discovery Protocols posted on the website at: https://nysd.uscourts.gov/hon-john-g-koeltl
Source page 5Discovery
Parties in employment cases alleging adverse action should abide by the Initial Discovery Protocols posted on the website at: https://nysd.uscourts.gov/hon-john-g-koeltl
Source page 5Trial exhibits and witnesses
1. in jury cases, requests to charge and proposed voir dire questions. When feasible, proposed jury charges should also be submitted on a CD-ROM in Word or WordPerfect format;
Source page 5Motion practice
3. in all cases, motions addressing any evidentiary or other issues which should be resolved in limine; and
Source page 5Discovery
5. Within fourteen (14) days of the initial disclosure, the parties must provide the Probation Department with any objections to the Pre-Sentence Investigation Report.
Source page 6Filing and working copies
1. Defense submissions to the Court in connection with sentencing should be submitted 14 days prior to the sentencing date.
Source page 7Filing and working copies
2. The Government submissions to the Court in connection with sentencing should be submitted 8 days prior to the sentencing date.
Source page 7Filing and working copies
3. The defense and Government submissions should be filed on ECF after redacting any personal identifying information and any other information that may properly be redacted. The parties should provide the Court courtesy copies of all sentencing submissions. The Court will file copies of
Source page 7Filing and working copies
1. Sealing/Redactions Not Requiring Court Approval. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2 describes sensitive information that must be redacted from public court filings without seeking prior permission from the Court. Such sensitive information includes: Social Security numbers; names of minor children; dates of birth; and financial account numbers.
Source page 8Motion practice
Other information that should be treated with caution and may warrant a motion for approval of sealed or redacted filing includes: personal identifying numbers (PIN numbers); medical records, treatment and diagnosis; employment history; individual financial information; proprietary or trade secret information; home addresses; and information regarding an individual’s cooperation with the government.
Source page 8Motion practice
2. Sealing/Redactions Requiring Court Approval. Motions or Letter Motions for approval of sealed or redacted filings in civil and miscellaneous cases and the subject documents, including the proposed sealed document(s), must be filed electronically through the court’s ECF system in conformity with the court’s standing order, 19-mc-00583, and ECF Rules & Instructions, section 6.
Source page 8Motion practice
The motion must be filed in public view, must explain the particular reasons for seeking to file that information under seal and should not include confidential information sought to be filed under seal. Supporting papers must be separately filed electronically and may be filed under seal or redacted only to the extent necessary to safeguard information sought to be filed under seal.
Source page 8Motion practice
The proposed sealed document must be contemporaneously filed under seal in the ECF system and electronically related to the motion. The summary docket text, but not the sealed document, will be open to public inspection and should not include confidential information sought to be filed under seal. Where the motion seeks approval to redact information from a document that is to be publicly filed, the filing party shall: (a) publicly file the document with the proposed redactions, and (b) electronically file under seal a copy of the unredacted document with the redactions highlighted. Both documents must be electronically filed through the ECF system and related to the motion.
Source page 9Filing and working copies
To be approved, any redaction or sealing of a court filing must be narrowly tailored to serve whatever purpose justifies the redaction or sealing and must be otherwise consistent with the presumption in favor of public access to judicial documents. See, e.g., Lugosch v. Pyramid Co.
Source page 9Filing and working copies
Any party unable to comply with the requirement for electronic filing under seal through the ECF system, or who has reason to believe that a particular document should not be electronically filed, must move for leave of the Court to file in the traditional manner, on paper.
Source page 9Motion practice
“The defendants shall respond in writing to this Order to Show Cause for a default judgment by . If the defendants fail to respond by that date, judgment may be entered against them and the defendants will have no trial. The plaintiff may reply by .
Source page 10Motion practice
The plaintiff shall serve a copy of this Order to Show Cause by and shall file proof of service by .
Source page 10Motion practice
No personal appearances are required in connection with this Order to Show Cause.”
Source page 10Shared court rules
SDNY and EDNY — Joint Local Civil and Criminal Rules
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Federal district-court proceedings only. Civil and criminal sections have distinct scope and district-specific exceptions. Not Bankruptcy Court rules.
Official source ↗ · Collected 2026-10-27Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
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 ↗ · Collected 2026-10-27Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
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 ↗ · Collected 2026-10-27Sources
Identity source checked July 25, 2026.
Biography sources checked August 3, 2026.
Federal Judicial Center biography
Identity source · HTML · Federal Judicial Center Biographical Directory · effective August 10, 1994 · Source checked July 25, 2026
View Federal Judicial Center biography ↗CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · CourtListener / Free Law Project · Source checked August 2, 2026
View CourtListener judicial biographical directory ↗Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court
Courtwide source · HTML · Supreme Court of the United States and Judicial Conference of the United States · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court ↗Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited
Courtwide source · HTML · Supreme Court of the United States and Judicial Conference of the United States · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited ↗