--- title: "Susan K. Lee | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-k-lee-tennessee-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Susan K. Lee U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee - State: Tennessee - Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-29 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Long‐serving, nonpartisan federal magistrate judge in the Eastern District of Tennessee, known for her extensive casework and adherence to legal standards, until her retirement in 2025 - Susan K. Lee held the role of a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee from July 12, 2004, until her retirement in 2025 ### Education ### Additional information - Magistrate, District Court, E.D. Tennessee, 2004-present - Public records show she signed 16 classified orders between 2005 and 2024, covering issues such as motions to suppress, motions to compel, settlement approvals, and habeas petitions. - Practitioner, Konvalinka & Harrison, 1988–2004 - Practitioner, 1985–1988, Atlanta, GA - J.D. — Univ. of Georgia — 1985 - M.B.A. — Univ. of Georgia — 1985 - B.A. — Univ. of Georgia — 1981 — Journalism - Many of her rulings were recommendations to the district court rather than final decisions - Joined the position by the district’s judges under the Federal Magistrates Act, serving a renewable eight‐year term. - No longer active and does not hear cases. ## 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.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=62) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=62) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=62) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9545/susan-k-lee/) - [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/9545/susan-k-lee/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Susan Kerr Lee](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9545/susan-k-lee/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Susan Kerr Lee](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-k-lee-tennessee-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/susan-k-lee-tennessee-us-magistrate", "name": "Susan K. 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