Jennifer Walker Elrod

Jennifer Walker Elrod
Elrod in 2007
Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office October 4, 2024
Preceded by	Priscilla Richman
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Incumbent
Assumed office October 19, 2007
Appointed by	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Patrick Higginbotham
Judge of the 190th District Court of Texas
In office April 23, 2002 – October 4, 2007
Appointed by	Rick Perry
Preceded by	John P. Devine
Succeeded by	Patricia J. Kerrigan
Personal details
Born	Jennifer Leigh Walker (1966-09-06) September 6, 1966 Port Arthur, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Education	Baylor University (BA) Harvard University (JD)

Jennifer Walker Elrod (born Jennifer Leigh Walker; September 6, 1966) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit since 2007 and as the chief judge of the court since 2024. She previously served as a state court judge on the 190th District Court of Texas from 2002 to 2007.

Background

Elrod was born Jennifer Leigh Walker in 1966 in Port Arthur, Texas, and grew up in Baytown, Texas.

After high school, Elrod studied economics at Baylor University, graduating in 1988 with a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude. At Baylor, she was the Outstanding Graduating Senior of the Honors Program and was eventually named Outstanding Young Alumna. She went to Harvard Law School in 1989 and received her Juris Doctor in 1992, graduating cum laude. At Harvard Law School, she was a member of the Board of Student Advisers, an active member of the Harvard Federalist Society, and a finalist in the Ames Moot Court competition. She became a member of the State Bar of Texas in 1992.

After law school, Elrod was a law clerk for Judge Sim Lake of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas from 1992 to 1994. She then entered private practice at the law firm Baker Botts.

Judicial career

State judicial service

In 2002, Governor Rick Perry appointed Elrod to be a judge on the 190th District Court in Harris County. She was elected to the judgeship in the 2002 general election, and again in 2006 when she ran unopposed. As a state district court judge, she presided over jury and bench trials involving civil litigation. Elrod remained on the Harris County bench until her confirmation to the Fifth Circuit.

Federal judicial service

President George W. Bush nominated Elrod to a vacancy on the Fifth Circuit on March 29, 2007, to replace Judge Patrick Higginbotham, who assumed senior status on August 26, 2006. Elrod received a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 19, 2007, and was voted out of committee on September 20, 2007. She was confirmed by the United States Senate by voice vote on October 4, 2007. She received her commission on October 19, 2007. On October 4, 2024, she became the chief judge of the court. She maintains chambers in Houston, Texas.

In 2022, Elrod ruled that the SEC's in-house adjudication of securities fraud charges was unconstitutional under the Seventh Amendment, Article I, and Article II of the Constitution. The Supreme Court affirmed her ruling on Seventh Amendment grounds in a 6-3 decision in 2024.

Sources

• "Elrod, Jennifer Walker". Federal Judicial Center.
• "Advisors". Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. 24 March 2009.
• "Jennifer Walker Elrod". The Federalist Society.

External links

• Jennifer Walker Elrod at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
• Harris County District Courts Online
• U.S. Department of Justice Resume for Elrod
• White House Profile of Elrod
• Lezon, Dale, "Senate confirms Harris County judge for appeals court," Houston Chronicle, October 5, 2007