--- title: "Karon O. Bowdre | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/karon-o-bowdre" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Karon O. Bowdre U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama - State: Alabama - 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 - Judge, District Court, N.D. Alabama, 2001-present - Senior United States district judge for the Northern District of Alabama, appointed in 2001 and elevated to senior status in 2020, with a career that includes serving as Chief Judge of the court from 2013 to 2019 - Professor of law, Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, 1990-2001 - Law clerk, Hon. J. Foy Guin, Jr., U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama, 1981-1982 ### Education - J.D. — Cumberland School of Law at Samford University (1981) - Samford University — B.A. (1977) ### Additional information - She is also the chair of the board of trustees of Samford University as of 2023. - Chief Judge: November 18, 2013 – December 31, 2019 - Commission: November 8, 2001 - Confirmation: November 6, 2001, by the Senate, 98–0 - Private practice, Alabama, 1982-1990 - Karon Lynn Owen Bowdre was born April 25, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama. - Date of birth: 1955-01-01 - Her judicial work covers a range of civil and criminal matters in the Northern District of Alabama, and she is known for her leadership in the court’s pretrial and trial procedures Northern District of Alabama. - Birth place: Montgomery, AL ## 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/1391331) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391331) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391331) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/341/karon-o-bowdre/) - [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/341/karon-o-bowdre/) - [Wikidata: Karon O. Bowdre](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6373235) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/karon-o-bowdre", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/karon-o-bowdre", "name": "Karon O. Bowdre | KnowJudges", "description": "Karon O. Bowdre, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. 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/karon-o-bowdre#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/karon-o-bowdre#judge", "name": "Karon O. 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Bowdre", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/karon-o-bowdre" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 0 | 0 | Not available | 0 | | 2y | 0 | 0 | Not available | 0 | | 5y | 18 | 18 | 11.4 | 18 | | 10y | 830 | 822 | 9 | 822 | 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.