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Judge Rebecca Rutherford is a United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Texas in Dallas, where she hears both civil and criminal matters. She also serves as the presiding judge for the district’s STEPS (Sentencing to Equip People for Success) court, as part of a joint effort with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Public Defender’s Office, and the Probation Office to address mental health and substance abuse issues to reduce incarceration and promote diversion from further involvement in the criminal justice system. 

Prior to taking the bench, Judge Rutherford practiced law at a Dallas-based national law firm and worked as a judicial law clerk in the Northern District of Texas.
Judge Rutherford graduated from SMU Dedman School of Law, magna cum laude, where she was a member of the Barristers, an articles editor for the SMU Law Review Association, and chief counsel for the Civil Clinic. Prior to attending law school, she taught 7th grade Language Arts in a Dallas area public school, where she was also the Student Council sponsor and a girls’ track coach. Judge Rutherford also attended SMU as an undergraduate, earning a B.A. in History, summa cum laude, with Honors in the Liberal Arts.

Judge Rutherford is a member of the State Bar of Texas, as well as various bar associations and numerous Inns of Court. She serves on the Board of Directors for SMU Dedman School of Law and was on the DBA Board of Directors in 2024 as the Judicial-at-Large Member. She is the current chair of the DBA Wellness Committee and the President of the Mac Taylor Inn of Court. She was honored by the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers as the Outstanding Mentor for 2025 and by Dallas Women Lawyers Association as the Outstanding Jurist for 2024. Judge Rutherford has been an adjunct professor at Texas A & M Law School and is a frequent presenter at CLE events and bench bar conferences.