--- title: "Margaret Rose Guzman | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Margaret Rose Guzman U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts - State: Massachusetts - Role: Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - American attorney and United States District Judge for the District of Massachusetts, confirmed by the Senate on March 1, 2023, and receiving her commission on March 3, 2023 - First justice, Ayer [Massachusetts] District Court, 2017-2023 - Associate justice of the district court, Commonwealth of Massachusetts Trial Court, 2009-2017 - 2009–2017: Associate Justice, Massachusetts Trial Court (Dudley District Court) - 2007–2009: Criminal Justice Act panel attorney, U.S. District Court, D. Mass - Criminal Justice Act Panel attorney, U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, 2007-2009 - The first Hispanic judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts ### Education - Boston University School of Law — J.D. (1992) - Clark University — B.A. (1989) ### Additional information - Trial advocacy workshop instructor, Harvard Law School, 2019, 2020, 2022 - General jurisdiction/core skills faculty, National Judicial College, 2020, 2021 - Private practice, Worcester, Massachusetts, 2005-2009 - Born 1960 in Worcester, Massachusetts. - Date of birth: 1960 - Known for her career in criminal defense, including a record of acquitting all 149 defendants in bench trials on drunk driving charges during her time on Dudley District Court. - Birth place: Worcester ## 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/13333861) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13333861) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13333861) - [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) - [Judge Margaret Rose Guzman](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13333861) - [Wikidata: Margaret R. Guzman](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q113100125) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman", "name": "Margaret Rose Guzman | KnowJudges", "description": "Margaret Rose Guzman, U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Source-linked judicial identity, courtroom procedures, and presentation guidance.", "dateModified": "2026-10-08", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman#judge" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman#judge", "name": "Margaret Rose Guzman", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman", "jobTitle": "Judge", "worksFor": { "@type": "GovernmentOrganization", "name": "U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.fjc.gov/node/13333861" ], "birthDate": "1960", "birthPlace": "Worcester", "alumniOf": [ { "@type": "EducationalOrganization", "name": "Clark University" }, { "@type": "EducationalOrganization", "name": "Boston University School of Law" } ] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "KnowJudges", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Massachusetts", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/state/massachusetts" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Margaret Rose Guzman", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/margaret-rose-guzman" } ] } ] } ``` ## Federal civil docket activity Dataset updated through 2026-06-30. | Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample | | --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | 1y | 134 | 6 | Not available | 6 | | 2y | 291 | 55 | 2.8 | 55 | | 5y | 519 | 220 | 4.4 | 220 | | 10y | 519 | 220 | 4.4 | 220 | 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.