--- title: "Mary Kay Vyskocil | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/mary-kay-vyskocil" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Mary Kay Vyskocil U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York - State: New York - 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 - Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. New York, 2016-present - President Donald Trump first nominated Vyskocil to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in May 2018 to fill the vacancy left by Judge Loretta A. Preska - Selected as a United States bankruptcy judge for the Southern District of New York in 2016, serving until her elevation to the district court ### Education - St. John's University School of Law — J.D. (1983) - Dominican College — B.A. (1980) - Dominican University of New York - St. John's University School of Law, serving on the Moot Court Executive Board — J.D. ### Additional information - After a series of hearings and procedural steps, she was renominated in 2019 and confirmed by the Senate on December 19, 2019, with a 91–3 vote. - Private practice, New York City, 1983-2016 - Date of birth: 1958 - Highly experienced American jurist with a distinguished career in both private practice and the federal judiciary. - Judge Vyskocil has presided over a wide range of cases, including complex commercial litigation, bankruptcy matters, and civil disputes. - Before joining the federal bench, Vyskocil practiced general commercial litigation for nearly 33 years at the New York City law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where she handled major insurance and reinsurance disputes. - Her service as a bankruptcy judge and subsequent appointment to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York highlights her expertise in complex legal matters and her role in one of the country’s most prominent federal courts - Birth place: New York City ## 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/7545456) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/7545456) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/7545456) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8908/mary-kay-vyskocil/) - [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/8908/mary-kay-vyskocil/) - [Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil](https://www.fjc.gov/node/7545456) - [Wikidata: Mary Kay Vyskocil](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q53036250) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/mary-kay-vyskocil", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/mary-kay-vyskocil", "name": "Mary Kay Vyskocil | KnowJudges", "description": "Mary Kay Vyskocil, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. 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Civil and criminal sections have distinct scope and district-specific exceptions. Not Bankruptcy Court rules. [Official source](https://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/local_rules/2026-01-02%20-%20EDNY%20and%20SDNY%20Joint%20Local%20Rules%20As%20Amended.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [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.