--- title: "Thomas Patrick Barber | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-p-barber" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Thomas Patrick Barber U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida - State: Florida - Role: U.S. District 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, M.D. Florida, 2019-present - Adjunct professor of innovative education, University of South Florida, 2018-present - Adjunct professor of law, Stetson Law School, 2004-present - United States District Judge for the Middle District of Florida, appointed in 2019 to replace Judge James D. Whittemore - Judge, Circuit Court of the 13th Judicial Circuit of Florida, 2016-2019 - Judge, Circuit Court of Florida, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, 2008-2019 - Judge, Circuit Court of the 13th Judicial Circuit of Florida, 2008-2016 - Judge, Hillsborough County [Florida] Court, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, 2004-2008 - Judge, Hillsborough County Court, FL, 2004-2008 - Assistant state attorney, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, Tampa, FL, 1997-1999 - Assistant State Attorney, Circuit Court of the 13th Judicial Circuit of Florida, 1997-1999 ### Education - University of Pennsylvania — J.D. (1992) - University of Florida — B.A. (1989) - University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School ### Additional information - Partner, Carlton Fields, P.A., 2002-2004 - Private practice, Tampa, FL, 2000-2004 - Practitioner, Carlton Fields, P.A., 2000-2002 - Assistant statewide prosecutor, State of Florida, 1999-2000 - Private practice, Tampa, FL, 1992-1997 - Associate, Carlton Fields, P.A., 1992-1997 - Date of birth: 1966-01-01 - Barber has handled a broad range of civil and criminal cases in Florida state courts before his federal appointment - Birth place: Pittsburgh, PA ## 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: Assisted-Listening Headsets Headsets that enhance volume . Audio/Visual Players VHS and DVD players . Document Cameras (ELMO) Devices that display on a large screen a hardcopy document placed on the document camera . [Courtroom Technology | Middle District of Florida | United States District Court](https://www.flmd.uscourts.gov/courtroom-technology) 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/6595046) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/6595046) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/6595046) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8540/thomas-patrick-barber/) - [Courtroom Technology | Middle District of Florida | United States District Court](https://www.flmd.uscourts.gov/courtroom-technology) - [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/8540/thomas-patrick-barber/) - [Wikidata: Thomas P. Barber](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55635757) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-p-barber", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/thomas-p-barber", "name": "Thomas Patrick Barber | KnowJudges", "description": "Thomas Patrick Barber, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. 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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.