---
title: "Richard Gaylore Stearns | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/richard-g-stearns"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-08"
---

# Richard Gaylore Stearns

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

- Judge, District Court, D. Massachusetts, 1993-present
- American lawyer and United States district judge for the District of Massachusetts, a position he has held since November 24, 1993
- Associate justice, Massachusetts Superior Court, 1990-1993
- Assistant U.S. attorney, District of Massachusetts, 1982-1990
- Norfolk County [Massachusetts] District Attorney's Office, 1976-1982

### Education

- Harvard University — J.D. (1976)
- Harvard Law School in — J.D. (1976)
- University of Oxford — 1971
- Stanford University — B.A. (1968)

### Additional information

- On October 27, 1993, President Bill Clinton nominated Stearns to the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, replacing John J. McNaught.
- Thomas P. O'Neill III, MA, 1975-1976
- George McGovern, MA, 1972-1973
- Born June 27, 1944, Los Angeles, California.
- Date of birth: 1944-01-01
- Speech writer, Lt.
- Gov.
- Special assistant, U.S. Sen.
- Birth place: Los Angeles, CA

## 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

### courtroom technology

Scope: courtwide

Courtwide presentation-related guidance applies to this judge.

Evidence excerpt: . Practical Use of Courtroom Technology During a proceeding, the Judge's courtroom deputy is the primary contact for courtroom technology. Please be aware that any requested changes may need to be reviewed and approved by the Judge prior to any changes being made.

[Technology in the Courtroom | United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts](https://www.mad.uscourts.gov/attorneys/courtroom-technology.htm)
Source checked: 2026-07-24

### courtroom technology

Scope: courtwide

Courtwide presentation-related guidance applies to this judge.

Evidence excerpt: Who controls the evidence presentation system at trial? The Judge and courtroom deputy have full control of the system.

[Courtroom Technology](https://www.mad.uscourts.gov/attorneys/pdf/Courtroom%20Training%20Power%20Point.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-24

### 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/1388266)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1388266)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1388266)
- [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3088/richard-gaylore-stearns/)
- [Technology in the Courtroom | United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts](https://www.mad.uscourts.gov/attorneys/courtroom-technology.htm)
- [Courtroom Technology](https://www.mad.uscourts.gov/attorneys/pdf/Courtroom%20Training%20Power%20Point.pdf)
- [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/3088/richard-gaylore-stearns/)
- [Judge Richard Gaylore Stearns](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1388266)
- [Wikidata: Richard Gaylore Stearns](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7325887)

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## Federal civil docket activity

Dataset updated through 2026-06-30.

| Period | Assigned cases | Terminated cases | Median disposition (months) | Median sample |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| 1y | 276 | 92 | 0.9 | 92 |
| 2y | 455 | 216 | 1.5 | 216 |
| 5y | 978 | 729 | 3 | 729 |
| 10y | 1865 | 1612 | 4.2 | 1612 |

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.