--- title: "John Wheadon deGravelles | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-wheadon-degravelles" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # John Wheadon deGravelles U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana - State: Louisiana - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, M.D. Louisiana, 2014-present - John W. deGravelles is a U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Louisiana, appointed by President Barack Obama in 2014 and based in Baton Rouge - court: U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana · role: Judge · start date: 2014-07-23 · notes: Nominated by Barack Obama on March 13, 2014 to seat vacated by James J. Brady - Partner — deGravelles, Palmintier, Holthaus & Frugé LLP (and predecessor firms) · start year: 1987 · end year: 2014 - Solo practitioner in 1986–87 and then a partner at deGravelles, Palmintier, Holthaus & Frugé LLP - Associate / Partner — Dué, Dodson, deGravelles, Robinson & Caskey (and predecessor firms) · start year: 1974 · end year: 1986 - From 1974 to 1986, deGravelles practiced law with Dué, Dodson, deGravelles, Robinson & Caskey, later becoming a partner in 1976 ### Education - Louisiana State University Law School (now Paul M. Hebert Law Center) — Order of the Coif — J.D. (1974) - He obtained a B.A. in 1971 and a J.D. in 1974 from Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center, graduating with Order of the Coif honors - Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College — B.A. (1971) ### Additional information - U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana since July 23, 2014, after being nominated on March 13, 2014, and confirmed by the Senate on July 22, 2014. - Since 1994, he has been an adjunct faculty member at LSU Law Center, teaching courses in maritime torts, advanced litigation, and federal courts. - Commission issued July 23, 2014 - Private practice, Baton Rouge, LA, 1974-2014 - Private practice — Private practice, Baton Rouge, Louisiana · start year: 1974 · end year: 2014 - In 2001, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to teach American maritime private international law at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki - Adjunct Faculty — Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center · start year: 1994 - Solo Practitioner — Solo Practice · start year: 1986 · end year: 1987 - Born John Wheadon deGravelles in Lafayette, Louisiana, in 1949, he is the son of Charles and Virginia deGravelles, both former Republican National Committee members. - Date of birth: 1949-01-01 - His practice spanned a wide range of civil litigation in state and federal courts - He succeeded James J. Brady. - He has a twin brother, Charles Nations deGravelles, an Episcopal archdeacon. - He has also taught maritime personal injury law at Tulane University Law School’s Summer Program in Rhodes, Greece, and has delivered lectures internationally in Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, and Greece. - Birth place: Lafayette, LA ## 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/1394621) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394621) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394621) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/846/john-wheadon-degravelles/) - [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/846/john-wheadon-degravelles/) - [Wikidata: John W. deGravelles](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16142629) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-wheadon-degravelles) - [Supplied Louisiana biography research](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_W._deGravelles) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/846/john-wheadon-degravelles/) - [Wikidata: John W. deGravelles](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16142629) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-wheadon-degravelles", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/john-wheadon-degravelles", "name": "John Wheadon deGravelles | KnowJudges", "description": "John Wheadon deGravelles, U.S. District Court for the Middle 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.