---
title: "Sarah Morgan Davenport | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sarah-m-davenport"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Sarah Morgan Davenport

U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico · Judge

## Profile

- Court: U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico
- State: New Mexico
- Role: Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-25

## Summary

Official judge-specific and circuitwide procedural guidance has been located for this profile.

## Biography

### Professional career

- American judge serving on the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico since January 13, 2025
- Assistant U.S. attorney, District of New Mexico, 2009-2024; supervisory assistant U.S. attorney, 2022-2024
- Special assistant U.S. attorney, District of New Mexico (on detail from town of Mesilla), 2008-2009
- Unit law clerk, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico (on detail from government contractor), 2006-2008
- Position: Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico

### Education

- University of New Mexico School of Law — J.D. (2006)
- New Mexico State University — B.A. (1998)

### Additional information

- Commission issued: January 13, 2025; sworn in by Senior Judge Robert C. Brack
- Born 1976.
- Her confirmation was one of the most closely voted in the Biden administration’s judicial appointments

## 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: judge specific

Judge-specific source

Evidence excerpt: Exhibits must be submitted in electronic format two weeks prior to trial. Parties should refer to the attached JERS Informational letter, along with the Attorney Guide to JERS for instructions on how to submit electronic exhibits to the Court. IV.

[Pretrial%20Instructions%20for%20Civil%20Cases_0.pdf](https://www.nmd.uscourts.gov/sites/nmd/files/Pretrial%20Instructions%20for%20Civil%20Cases_0.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/13761905)
- [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761905)
- [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761905)
- [Pretrial%20Instructions%20for%20Civil%20Cases_0.pdf](https://www.nmd.uscourts.gov/sites/nmd/files/Pretrial%20Instructions%20for%20Civil%20Cases_0.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)
- [Judge Sarah Morgan Davenport](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13761905)

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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 | 193 | 11 | 1.4 | 11 |
| 2y | 213 | 16 | 1.5 | 16 |
| 5y | 213 | 16 | 1.5 | 16 |
| 10y | 213 | 16 | 1.5 | 16 |

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.
