--- title: "Tu M. Pham | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/tu-m-pham-tennessee-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Tu M. Pham U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western 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 - Chief Magistrate Judge Tu M. Pham is a federal judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, serving since April 21, 2003, and currently as Chief Magistrate Judge - Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Northern District of Illinois, 2001–2003-04 - Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office - Western District of Tennessee, 1999–2001 - Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 1996–1997 (to William L. Garwood) ### Education ### Additional information - Magistrate, District Court, W.D. Tennessee, 2003-present - Practitioner, Kirkland & Ellis, 1997–1999 - J.D. — Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign — 1996 - B.A. — Tulane Univ. — 1993 — English - Born November 17, 1971, in Di Linh, Vietnam, Pham immigrated to the U.S. at age three with his family. - Date of birth: 1971 - Judge Pham handles a range of civil cases, including employment discrimination, medical malpractice, breach of contract, wrongful death, and personal injury matters. - He is a member of the Federal Bar Association’s Memphis Mid‐South Chapter and has served on various bar association boards and task forces - Birth place: Di Linh, Vietnam ## 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=64) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=64) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=64) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9555/tu-m-pham/) - [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/9555/tu-m-pham/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Tu M. Pham](https://legaldatalab.law.virginia.edu/brmag-judges/brmag-judges.json) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9555/tu-m-pham/) - [BR/MAG Judge Database: Tu M. Pham](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/tu-m-pham-tennessee-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/tu-m-pham-tennessee-us-magistrate", "name": "Tu M. Pham | KnowJudges", "description": "Tu M. Pham, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. 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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-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.