U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
Texas · A federal trial court, where federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. Appeals go to the Fifth Circuit.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Fifth Circuit, which reviews its decisions on appeal. This page lists every judge to serve on the court, current and former, with who appointed them and whom they succeeded.
Party letters here are the appointing president’s, never a judge’s own: D Democratic, R Republican, N pre-modern-party era (Federalist, Whig, and other early parties); “–” means no recorded party. Counts cover the court’s entire history.
Judges in active service
- Keith P. Ellison
- Randy Crane
- Marina G. Marmolejo
- Nelva G. Ramos
- Diana Saldaña
- Alfred H. Bennett
- George C. Hanks Jr.
- Jose R. Olvera Jr.
- Fernando Rodriguez Jr.
- Jeffrey V. Brown
- Charles R. Eskridge III
- David S. Morales
- Drew B. Tipton
- John A. Kazen
- Nicholas J. Ganjei
- Arthur R. Jones
- John G. E. Marck
Senior judges
Still members of the court: senior judges have stepped back from a full docket but continue to hear cases.
- Hayden W. Head Jr.
- Ricardo H. Hinojosa
- Lynn N. Hughes
- David Hittner
- Kenneth M. Hoyt
- Simeon T. Lake III
- Melinda Harmon
- John D. Rainey
- Lee H. Rosenthal
- Ewing Werlein Jr.
- Janis G. Jack
- Hilda G. Tagle
- Andrew S. Hanen
- Micaela Alvarez
- Gray H. Miller
Seats over time
Each band is one judgeship, from the court’s founding to today. A segment’s width is the holder’s tenure; its color is the appointing president’s party. Gaps are vacancies.
Kenneth M. Hoyt (current) · Alfred Homer Bennett (current) · Simeon Timothy Lake III (current) · Drew Barnett Tipton (current) · Andrew S. Hanen (current) · Lynn Nettleton Hughes (current) · Nicholas Jon Ganjei (current) · Marina Garcia Marmolejo (current) · Melinda Harmon (current) · Jeffrey Vincent Brown (current) · Ricardo H. Hinojosa (current) · Hayden Wilson Head Jr. (current) · Nelva Gonzales Ramos (current) · David Hittner (current) · Micaela Alvarez (current) · Diana Saldaña (current) · John David Rainey (current) · Fernando Rodriguez Jr. (current) · George Carol Hanks Jr. (current) · Keith P. Ellison (current) · Ewing Werlein Jr. (current) · Gray Hampton Miller (current) · Charles R. Eskridge III (current) · Lee Hyman Rosenthal (current) · Janis Graham Jack (current) · David Steven Morales (current) · John Andrew Kazen (current) · Hilda G. Tagle (current) · Jose Rolando Olvera Jr. (current) · Randy Crane (current) · Carl Olaf Bue Jr. · George P. Kazen
Former judges
Magistrate judges
Appointed by the judges of this district to renewable 8-year terms, not nominated by the president or confirmed by the Senate. They handle pretrial matters, misdemeanors, and many civil cases by consent.
| Magistrate judge | Years |
|---|---|
| Nadia S. Medrano | 2021–present |
| Christopher A. dos Santos | 2020–present |
| Julie K. Hampton | 2020–present |
| Juan F. Alanis | 2018–present |
| Peter J. Bray | 2018–present |
| Christina A. Bryan | 2018–present |
| Andrew M. Edison | 2018–present |
| John A. Kazen | 2018–present |
| Sam S. Sheldon | 2018–present |
| Dena Palermo | 2016–present |
| Ignacio Torteya III | 2014–present |
| Jason B. Libby | 2013–present |
| Diana Song Quiroga | 2012–present |
| Ronald G. Morgan | 2009–present |
| James Scott Hacker | 2008–present |
| Peter E. Ormsby | 2005–present |
| Nancy K. Johnson | 1998–present |
| B. Janice Ellington | 1996–present |
| Frances Stacy | 1990–present |
| Eduardo de Ases | ––present |
| Dorina Ramos | ––present |
| Guillermo R Garcia | 2010–2018 |
| George Carol Hanks Jr. | 2010–2015 |
| Brian L Owsley | 2005–2013 |
| Felix Recio | 1999–2013 |
| Mary Milloy | 1992–2018 |
| John R Froeschner | 1991–2017 |
Bankruptcy court
Practicing before this court
The rules that govern a case here (the S.D. Texas’s local rules, standing orders, and each judge’s own procedures) live on the court’s official site. Direct links:
Links to the court’s own site, verified 2026-07-05. Rules change. Confirm against the court’s current posting before filing.
How a judge gets here. Each judge is nominated by a president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, then holds a numbered seat, for life, until they take senior status, or until they leave the bench. Open any judge to see who appointed them, how the Senate voted, and whom they succeeded, a chain that runs back to 1902. This court is also served by magistrate judges, listed above, whom the district’s own judges appoint. Read more on how federal judges are appointed.
Source: FJC Biographical Directory and CourtListener / Free Law Project (bulk data). Data as of 2026-08-10 (FJC); magistrates 2026-03-31 (CourtListener bulk snapshot). Verify against the primary source before relying.