Rachel E. Schwartz was born in a Chicago suburb and raised in Lawrence, Kansas. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science, Economics, and American Studies from the University of Kansas in 1998, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa. In 2001, she earned her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Following law school, Judge Schwartz joined a large law firm in Dallas, Texas. In 2004, Judge Schwartz joined the law firm Stueve Siegel Hanson LLP in Kansas City, Missouri, where she became an equity partner in 2008. Judge Schwartz focused on complex litigation and was appointed by federal courts in Kansas and California as co-lead counsel in two separate multidistrict litigation actions. While in private practice, she held numerous leadership roles in the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association including serving on the Board of Directors and as President of the Federal Courts Advocates Section. She also served on the Bench-Bar Committee for the District of Kansas.

Judge Schwartz was appointed in 2022 to serve as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of Kansas.