--- title: "Susan Courtwright Rodriguez | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-courtwright-rodriguez" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Susan Courtwright Rodriguez U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina - State: North Carolina - 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 - U.S. District Judge for the Western District of North Carolina, confirmed in December 2025 after serving as a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the same court since 2023 - U.S. Magistrate Judge, Western District of North Carolina (April 2023–Dec 2025) - Adjunct professor for legal writing, Charlotte School of Law, 2010 Private practice, Charlotte, North Carolina, 2011-2023 - Policy advisor, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2006-2011 (on leave 2009-2011) Law clerk, Hon. Frank D. Whitney, U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, 2009-2011 - U.S. District Judge, Western District of North Carolina: Nominated by President Donald Trump on Aug ### Education - George Mason University School of Law (now Antonin Scalia Law School) — J.D. (2009) - Centre College — B.A. (2003) ### Additional information - 22, 2025, to replace Frank DeArmon Whitney Senate Judiciary Committee report: Oct. - 9, 2025 (17–5) Senate cloture: Dec. - 3, 2025 (63–34) Confirmation: Dec. - 4, 2025 (57–32) Judicial commission: Dec. - Appointed a Kentucky Colonel in 2003 - representing clients in cases involving the DOJ, DHS, CFPB, and FTC. - Rodriguez’s legal work focused on government investigations and white‐collar matters ## 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/13762092) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762092) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762092) - [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 Susan Courtwright Rodriguez](https://www.fjc.gov/node/13762092) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-courtwright-rodriguez", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-courtwright-rodriguez", "name": "Susan Courtwright Rodriguez | KnowJudges", "description": "Susan Courtwright Rodriguez, U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. 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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.