---
title: "Kelly K.E. Mahoney | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/kelly-k-e-mahoney-iowa-us-magistrate"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-08"
---

# Kelly K.E. Mahoney

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa · U.S. Magistrate Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa
- State: Iowa
- 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 Northern District of Iowa, appointed in 2017 and serving as Chief Magistrate Judge since 2018
- 2017–present: Magistrate Judge, Northern District of Iowa
- 2009–2016: Assistant U.S. Attorney, Southern District of Iowa
- Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Southern District of Iowa, 2004–2016
- Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Southern District of Iowa, 2004–2006
- Assistant District Attorney, State of Kansas - Eighteenth Judicial District, 2002–2003
- 2002–2003: Assistant District Attorney, 18th Judicial District, Wichita, KS

### Education


### Additional information

- Magistrate, District Court, N.D. Iowa, 2017-present
- Practitioner, Jordan & Mahoney Law Firm, 2006–2008
- 2006–2008: Private practice, Boone, IA.
- J.D. — Washburn Univ. — 2002
- B.A. — Kansas State Univ. — 1998 — History
- Date of birth: 1975
- Birth place: Anthony, KS

## 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=75)
- [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=75)
- [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=75)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9211/kelly-ke-mahoney/)
- [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/9211/kelly-ke-mahoney/)
- [BR/MAG Judge Database: Kelly K.E. Mahoney](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9211/kelly-ke-mahoney/)
- [BR/MAG Judge Database: Kelly K.E. Mahoney](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json)

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## 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.
