---
title: "Lawrence F. Stengel | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/lawrence-f-stengel-3096"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Lawrence F. Stengel

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania · Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- State: Pennsylvania
- Role: Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-06-30

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge, District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania, 2004-present
- Adjunct professor, Millersville University, 2000-2004
- Adjunct professor, Franklin & Marshall College, 1997-2004
- Judge, Court of Common Pleas of Lancaster County Pennsylvania, 1990-2004
- Teacher, Lancaster Pennsylvania Catholic High School, 1974-1977
- He also held the role of an adjunct professor at Franklin & Marshall College, Millersville University, and the Beasley School of Law at Temple University

### Education

- University of Pittsburgh School of Law — J.D. (1980)
- Saint Joseph’s University — B.A. (1974)

### Additional information

- Retired from active service on August 31, 2018.
- Stengel became Chief Judge on August 1, 2017, and served in that role until August 1, 2018.
- received his commission on June 21, 2004.
- President George W. Bush nominated Stengel to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on November 6, 2003, to fill the seat vacated by Ronald L. Buckwalter.
- received the President’s Award in 2002 for his work on racial disparity in sentencing
- He was elected to a full term in 1991 and retained in 2001.
- In 1990, Governor Robert P. Casey appointed Stengel to the Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas.
- Private practice, Lancaster, PA, 1985-1990
- Practiced law in Pittsburgh from 1980 to 1984 with Dickie, McCamey, and Chilcote, P.C., and then in Lancaster with his father from 1985 to 1990.
- Private practice, Pittsburgh, PA, 1980-1984
- Lawrence Francis Stengel was born on August 7, 1952, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
- Date of birth: 1952-01-01
- Recognized for his fairness and insight in both judicial and alternative dispute resolution roles.
- He has extensive experience in corporate governance, civil rights, employment law, intellectual property, and compliance matters.
- During his 14 years on the state bench, he presided over hundreds of trials, including 20 homicide cases (two capital trials), and handled complex civil matters such as negligence, product liability, professional malpractice, land use, and commercial disputes.
- He also served on the Executive Committee of the Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges
- Birth place: Lancaster, PA
- Law Review, University of Pittsburgh School of Law

## 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

### recording photography evidence presentation

Scope: statewide

For Pennsylvania Common Pleas proceedings, statewide Pa.R.J.A. 1910 prohibits courtroom broadcasting, recording, and photography unless an exception or judicial authorization applies; the rule also recognizes judge-authorized electronic or photographic means for evidence presentation.

Evidence excerpt: the use of electronic or photographic means for the presentation of evidence

[201 Pa. Code Chapter 19, Rule 1910, Broadcasting, Recording and Photography in the Courtroom](https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?d=&file=%2Fsecure%2Fpacode%2Fdata%2F201%2Fchapter19%2Fchap19toc.html)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3096/lawrence-f-stengel/)
- [Official roster](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3096/lawrence-f-stengel/)
- [U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania current judicial profile](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3096/lawrence-f-stengel/)
- [201 Pa. Code Chapter 19, Rule 1910, Broadcasting, Recording and Photography in the Courtroom](https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?d=&file=%2Fsecure%2Fpacode%2Fdata%2F201%2Fchapter19%2Fchap19toc.html)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3096/lawrence-f-stengel/)
- [Stengel, Lawrence F. | Federal Judicial Center](https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/stengel-lawrence-f)
- [Wikidata: Lawrence F. Stengel](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6504044)

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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.
