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THE ROBING ROOM
where judges are judged
Hon. Paul W. Grimm
District judge
D.Md.
4th Circuit
Average Rating:
8.8
-
15
rating(s)
rating submitted
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Ratings:
What others have rated
Hon. Paul W. Grimm
evaluator
ID
date
Temp* Sch* Indu* Comp* Punct* Ev-Cv* Ev-Cr* Flex Bail Crim Settle Trial Sent Coop Average
Criminal Defense Lawyer
25680
1/1/18
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
21237
1/2/13
10
10
10
10
10
10
0
10
0
0
10
0
0
0
10
Civil Litigation - Private
10114
1/2/10
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
7481
1/2/08
9
10
10
10
8
10
0
9
0
0
10
0
0
0
9.5
Civil Litigation - Private
7367
1/1/08
10
10
10
10
10
5
0
10
0
0
10
0
0
0
7.9
Civil Litigation - Private
6680
1/2/08
7
8
10
10
10
7
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
8.7
Civil Litigation - Private
6516
1/2/08
2
3
1
1
8
2
0
5
0
0
1
0
0
0
2.8
Other
3607
1/2/07
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Govt.
3566
1/2/07
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
0
0
10
0
0
0
10
Civil Litigation - Private
2534
1/2/06
10
10
8
10
9
10
10
8
0
9
10
0
0
0
9.6
Civil Litigation - Private
2541
1/2/06
10
10
10
10
10
10
0
10
0
0
10
0
0
0
10
Criminal Defense Lawyer
1649
1/2/06
10
10
10
10
10
10
0
8
0
0
0
0
0
0
10
Civil Litigation - Private
1653
1/2/06
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
0
0
0
10
0
0
0
10
category average
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Items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating
Fam
Par
Qu-Arg
At-Arg
Sch
Cri
Civ
Lab
Imm
How familiar are you with the work of this judge? (1=Not at all familiar,10=Extremely familiar)
Participates in Oral Argument (1=Rarely,10=Always)
Quality of Questions During Oral Argument (1=Poor,10=Extremely insightful)
Attitude during oral argument (1=Consistently inappropriate,10=Consistently respectful)
Scholarship as reflected in Opinions (1=Poor,10=Outstanding)
General Inclination in Criminal Appeals (1=Strongly ProGovernment,10=Strongly ProDefense)
General Inclination in Civil Rights Appeals (1=Strongly Pro-Defendant,10=Strongly ProPlaintiff)
General Inclination in Labor Law Appeals (1=Strongly ProEmployee,10=Strongly ProEmployer)
General Inclination in Immigration Appeals (1=Strongly ProImmigrant,10=Strongly ProGov.)
evaluator
ID
date
Fam Par Qu-Arg At-Arg Sch Cri Civ Lab Imm
Criminal Defense Lawyer
25680
1/1/18
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
21237
1/2/13
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
10114
1/2/10
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
7481
1/2/08
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
7367
1/1/08
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
6680
1/2/08
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
6516
1/2/08
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Other
3607
1/2/07
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Govt.
3566
1/2/07
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
2534
1/2/06
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
2541
1/2/06
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Criminal Defense Lawyer
1649
1/2/06
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Civil Litigation - Private
1653
1/2/06
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
category average
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Non-lawyer Rating
(if applicable)
evaluator
ID
date
Rating
Litigant
2255
1/1/06
6
Other
1881
1/2/06
10
category average
-
Temp*
Sch*
Indu*
Comp*
Punct*
Ev-Cv*
Ev-Cr*
Flex
Bail
Crim
Settle
Trial
Sent
Coop
Temperament (1=Awful 10=Excellent)
Scholarship (1=Awful 10=Excellent)
Industriousness (1=Not at all industrious 10=Highly industrious)
Ability to Handle Complex Litigation (1=Awful 10=Excellent)
Punctuality (1=Chronically Late 10=Always on Time)
Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation (1=Demonstrates Bias 10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation (1=Demonstrates Bias 10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Flexibility in Scheduling (1=Completely Inflexible 10=Very Flexible)
General Inclination Regarding Bail (1=Pro-Defense 10=Pro-Government)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pre-Trial (1=Pro-Defense 10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Civil Settlement Discussions (1=Least Involved 10=Most Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial (1=Pro-Defense 10=Pro-Government)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing (1=Pro-Defense 10=Pro-Government)
Typical Discount Off Guidelines for Cooperators (1=10% 10=100%)
comments1
Comments:
What others have said about
Hon. Paul W. Grimm
Criminal Defense Lawyer
comment #:
25680
rating:
0
As a Pro Se Plaintiff before judge Grimm on many cases, how many cases in general do you think judge Grimm grant on Order? Thee answer has been ZERO, he is very good at his job representing his club not the people, none of you members of the private club serve the people.
1/1/18, 5:42 PM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
21237
rating:
10
He is a great judge, and both an intellectual and a scholar.
1/2/13, 4:07 AM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
10114
rating:
0
Judge Grimm is one of the brightest fairest Jurists any of us will ever come across. In addition to being an excellent trial judge, his efforts in settlement conference, the way he treats the attorneys and parties and his overall demeanor are exceptional. he is also approachable and friendly outside of the Courtroom. One of a kind.
1/2/10, 5:13 PM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
7481
rating:
9.5
Judge Grimm deserves to be on the Fourth Circuit. He is a rare combination of legal scholar and instinctual litigator. I was opposing counsel to him in years gone by and have observed him on the bench for some time. The practice of law would be made immeasurably more professional and enjoyable if we could only clone him.
1/2/08, 1:07 PM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
7367
rating:
7.9
Judge Grimm is, without a doubt, the best and most intelligent Federal Magistrate Judge in Maryland. He is always prepared and generally knows more about the issues than the lawyers. In settlement meetings, his insight is balanced and universally respected. As a result, Judge Grimm is regarded as the mediator of choice by most lawyers in Maryland. In short (and I do not believe that I am exaggerating on this), Judge Grimm is the only judge that I have ever appeared before who I felt had the intellectual horsepower to be on the Supreme Court. My great hope is that President Obama will elevate him to the District Court in short order.
1/1/08, 8:11 PM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
6680
rating:
8.7
A generally good judge, with the following caveats: his knowledge of the law is limited to discovery and in that realm he's scholarly and thorough. His knowledge of substantive law outside of that area is limited. Thus within the confines of the rules themselves, he's fairly good but suffers a bit from the specialist's desire to 'overprotect' their field without looking at anything beyond it (like common sense). He has the same tendency to divorce discovery from reality that the federal circuit does with patent law (which is why they have been getting reversed so much). Unfortunately, the standard of review for magistrates in discovery is pretty forgiving, so it's unlikely that he'll see much correction from above. He's fairly unique in that he has his own set of rules and page limits that apply to all motions filed in his court. This is in addition to the federal rules of civil procedure and the local rules of the District of Maryland. As the FRCP is an act of Congress, and the local court has authority from that act to make certain changes (which it has used) I simply don't know where he believes the authority for such generally applicable rules come from. It's a rather presumptuous thing for a magistrate judge to do in all cases. After promulgating them, he does not follow them consistently (even when they are pointed out to him) -- so be warned. He demonstrates little or no knowledge about the underlying technology of electronic data storage, which is surprising given the plaudits he receives for his discovery work. (He may know a lot and just feel that he can't bring it to bear in a case without witnesses, but that means that there's little advantage to having him have this expertise in terms of limiting expense). At oral argument, he also displays little or no innate skepticism about legal positions. Good judges are skeptical of both sides and humble at the core; they will probe both sides if for no other reason than to test their own inclination about how to resolve a dispute and the logical limits of each side's position. He takes whatever each side tells him without questioning either, which allows for argument by adjective. In general, this does not happen when written motions are submitted to him and he has a chance to pull the citations behind each one. He is very thorough and far more balanced in his written work, if a little pedantic at times. On purely oral motions, however, whoever throws the most mud first wins -- he then becomes terse, short-tempered, incurious and can be easily manipulated.
1/2/08, 3:53 AM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
6516
rating:
2.8
Short tempered, arrogant, know-it-all. Simply the worst federal judge (magistrate or district) that I have ever tried a case in front of.
1/2/08, 2:36 PM
Other
comment #:
3607
rating:
0
He is the best man I know. I look up to him, and want to be just like him. I am absolutly honored to know this man as a judge and as a person. He is the most honest and fair man in the world, and I am so lucky to know him.
1/2/07, 11:14 AM
Civil Litigation - Govt.
comment #:
3566
rating:
10
Superb jurist. Incredible passion, knowledge, and energy. Dedicated, capable, and intelligent.
1/2/07, 12:44 PM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
2534
rating:
9.6
Outstanding at settling civil matters and with complex questions.
1/2/06, 11:35 AM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
2541
rating:
10
Even though I had him as a mediator as opposed to in trial, he was the most thoroughly prepared judge I have ever encountered in 14 years of practice.
1/2/06, 3:43 PM
Litigant
comment #:
2255
rating:
0
1/1/06, 10:35 PM
Other
comment #:
1881
rating:
0
Judge Grimm is remarkably fair and thorough. He has also written some very useful and well-reasoned opinions regarding discovery and one on records expungement.
1/2/06, 6:52 PM
Criminal Defense Lawyer
comment #:
1649
rating:
10
Paul Grimm is a terrific jurist. Notwithstanding his considerable talents as a mediator, he is being wasted as a magistrate judge. He deserves to be elevated.
1/2/06, 2:35 AM
Civil Litigation - Private
comment #:
1653
rating:
10
The first commenter's remarks are exactly right. Grimm, a magistrate, is the best judge in this court, superior to all of the district judges. I think he's a Democrat, which is the only conceivable reason he's not a district judge yet. He is hard-working, honest, scrupulously fair. He writes extradordinarily scholarly opinions, especially on procedural topics; if there is a good Grimm opinion on the issue you're researching, your research is finished. I could go on and on. A superstar.
1/2/06, 3:04 AM
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