2.12 Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction

• Library: Federal Civil Practice in Virginia (Virginia CLE) (2023 Ed.)

2.12 MAGISTRATE JUDGE JURISDICTION

2.1201 Role in the Judicial System.

Magistrate judges do not have article III protection against salary reduction or tenure, but they are full members of the federal judiciary. Moreover, they increasingly exercise an expanding role in federal litigation.

Congress first provided a role for magistrate judges in the Federal Magistrates Act of 1968 ⁸⁰³ and has expanded the role twice in later enactments. ⁸⁰⁴

2.1202 Powers.

Most powers of magistrate judges are set forth in 28 U.S.C. § 636, including:

A. The power to hear and rule on nondispositive pretrial motions, such as discovery motions. ⁸⁰⁵ In one case, the Second Circuit considered an issue of "first impression" involving the interplay between the powers conferred upon a magistrate judge and the ordinary rule of nonreviewability of an order remanding a case to state court. ⁸⁰⁶ In this case, the court noted that a remand order "determine[s] the fundamental question of whether a case could proceed in a federal court" and is "indistinguishable from a motion to dismiss the action from federal court based on a lack of subject matter jurisdiction." ⁸⁰⁷ Accordingly, a magistrate judge presented with a motion for a remand does not have the power to issue an order remanding the case to state court but must instead present a report and recommendation to that effect to the district court, subject to de novo review by the district court under F ed. R. Civ. P. 72. ⁸⁰⁸

B. The power to conduct suppression hearings in criminal cases. ⁸⁰⁹

C. The power to hear dispositive pretrial motions, such as motions to dismiss or motions for summary judgment and to file a report containing recommended findings of fact and conclusions of law to the district court, which then rules. ⁸¹⁰

D. The power to serve as a special master in a nonjury trial where a party shows an exceptional condition requiring such an appointment or, if the parties consent, without a showing of an exceptional condition. ⁸¹¹

E. Only with the consent of all parties, the power to conduct civil jury or nonjury trials and to enter final judgment. ⁸¹²

The Fourth Circuit has pointed out that a district court has an obligation to make a de novo review of only those portions of the magistrate judge's report and recommendations to which timely objections are made. ⁸¹³ In the absence of a specific and timely filed objection, a district court need only to satisfy itself that there is "no clear error on the face of the record in...