William Lee Estes
Appointed by President Woodrow Wilson in 1920 and confirmed by voice vote, William Lee Estes was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. He earned a law degree from University of Texas School of Law in 1893. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1870–1930
- Appointed by
- Woodrow Wilson, 1920
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- Hampden-Sydney College 1891 · University of Texas Law 1893
- Succeeded
- Gordon James Russell
- Succeeded by
- Randolph Bryant
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | Eastern District of Texas succeeded Gordon James Russell | Wilson (D) | Voice vote |
Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own. A voice vote means the chamber approved aloud. No senator-by-senator tally is recorded.
Confirmation vote
Voice vote
The Senate approved this confirmation aloud, with no senator-by-senator tally recorded. Recorded roll-call votes begin in 1989.
Education
| Hampden-Sydney College | A.B. | 1891 |
| University of Texas School of Law | LL.B. | 1893 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Estes authored 3 published opinions for the court (1926–1929). Most cited: Starnes v. United States (13 citations).
A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included. Counts and rankings are objective and recomputable: how we count. We describe the record, not the judge.
Recent & notable rulings
| Year | Case | Citation | Cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 | Starnes v. United States | 13 F.2d 212 | 13 |
| 1928 | Gaddis v. Junker | 27 F.2d 156 | 7 |
| 1929 | National Fire Ins. Co. v. Sanders | 33 F.2d 157 | 1 |
Showing the 3 most-cited of 3 authored opinions in our data. “Cited” is inbound citations across the CourtListener corpus. Case links open the ruling’s full text (CourtListener) or its page here; read the methodology and verify against the primary source.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed William Lee Estes?
- President Woodrow Wilson appointed William Lee Estes to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in 1920.
- Was William Lee Estes appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- William Lee Estes was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was William Lee Estes's confirmation vote?
- William Lee Estes was confirmed by voice vote on February 18, 1920. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was William Lee Estes on?
- William Lee Estes was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- CourtListener bulk data (Free Law Project): authored opinions & citation counts
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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10 years on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).