Emily Procter was born in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1968. Her parents got divorced when she was two years old. Emily went on to graduate high school and attend East Carolina University, receiving degrees in journalism and dance. She was also a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority while she was there. Originally her plan had been to major in theater, but the head of the department discouraged her from doing so.

For awhile she worked as a weather personality in Greenville, North Carolina, before deciding to move to Los Angeles to further study acting as her father had agreed to pay the cost of the classes for two years. The acting lessons paid off, as she was able to get a couple of small roles in films like Jerry Maguire in 1996 and Breast Men in 1997. She continued getting minor roles in movies until her big break came when she got the reoccurring role of Ainsley Hayes in The West Wing.

However, she is most well known for her role as Calleigh Duquesne in the television crime drama CSI: Miami. The series is a spin-off of the original CSI (short for Crime Scene Investigation), which takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada. Procter also starred in the pilot episode of CSI: New York. Her character on the show is often very serious, which Procter claims is counteractive to her real personality, which she says is often very "silly, goofy".

Procter also enjoys doing several activities outside of acting, including being the lead singer for an eighties cover band known as "White Lighten". She is also a member of the Young Storytellers Program and does volunteer work at the Beverly Hills All Saints' Episcopal Church soup kitchen. She also collects antiques. Procter also used to play penny poker with her dad and is now an enthusiastic poker player who has played in a celebrity poker tournament.