--- title: "William H. Steele | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/william-h-steele" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-07" --- # William H. Steele U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama · U.S. District Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama - State: Alabama - Role: U.S. District Judge - Service status: senior - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, S.D. Alabama, 2003-present - Law clerk and bailiff, Alabama District Court, Tuscaloosa County, 1981-present - U.S. Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Alabama, 1990-2003 - Assistant U.S. attorney, Southern District of Alabama, 1987-1989 - Assistant and chief assistant district attorney, Mobile County, AL, 1981-1987 - U.S. Marine Corps officer and pilot (1972–1979) - William Howard Steele is an American federal judge who has served on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama for more than two decades ### Education - University of Southern Mississippi — B.A. (1972) ### Additional information - Over 2,200 district‐court cases assigned (1987–2026). - He assumed senior status on June 8, 2017. - Chief Judge (2010–2017). - Nominated to the U.S. District Court by President George W. Bush on January 7, 2003. - Confirmed March 13, 2003; commissioned March 14, 2003. - U.S. Army Reserve (retired), 1990-1997 - Served in the Alabama Army National Guard (1979–1990) and U.S. Army Reserve (1990–1997). - Participated in the 1976 evacuation of American citizens from Lebanon. - Date of birth: 1951-01-01 - Co‐founded the Child Advocacy Center in Mobile, Alabama. - Authored 111 published opinions; most cited: Longcrier v. - HL‐A Co., Inc. (96 citations). - 200 appellate affirmations out of 226 reviewed decisions. - Birth place: Tuscumbia, AL ## 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 ### presentation procedure Scope: courtwide Courtwide presentation-related guidance applies to this judge. Evidence excerpt: 31 IN COURTHOUSE * * * This matter is before the Court on its own motion to establish a uniform policy regarding the possession and use of laptop computers, cell phones, pagers, personal digital assistants, or other electronic devices in all courthouses in the Southern District of Alabama. Effective immediately, members of the bar, paralegals… [F:\HOME\LJT\DOCS\STANDORD\stdo31.wpd](https://www.alsd.uscourts.gov/sites/alsd/files/STDO31.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/1391766) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391766) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1391766) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3093/william-h-steele/) - [F:\HOME\LJT\DOCS\STANDORD\stdo31.wpd](https://www.alsd.uscourts.gov/sites/alsd/files/STDO31.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) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/3093/william-h-steele/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/william-h-steele", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/william-h-steele", "name": "William H. 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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.