James Wesley Hendrix

James Wesley "Wes" Hendrix (born 1977) is a United States District Judge of the Northern District of Texas and former Assistant United States Attorney for the same district.

Wes Hendrix
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
Incumbent
Assumed office August 8, 2019
Appointed by	Donald Trump
Preceded by	Samuel Ray Cummings
Personal details
Born	1977 (age 43–44) Lubbock, Texas, U.S.
Education	University of Chicago (BA) University of Texas School of Law (JD)

Biography

Hendrix was born in Lubbock, Texas, and graduated from Lubbock High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts, with honors, in 2000 from the University of Chicago, where he was selected as a student marshal and inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He earned his Juris Doctor, with high honors, in 2003 from the University of Texas School of Law. After graduating from law school, Hendrix began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in which capacity he served from 2003 to 2004. Between 2004 and 2007, he was an associate at Baker Botts, practicing complex commercial litigation in state and federal courts. Since 2007, he has served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, and has been Chief of the Appellate Division since 2012. Since 2015, he has also served on the Appellate Chiefs Working Group for the United States Attorney General's Advisory Committee.[1] In 2017, he became Chair of the Appellate Chiefs Working Group and a member of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee.[2]

Federal judicial service

Expired nomination to district court under Obama

On March 15, 2016, President Obama nominated Hendrix to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, to the seat vacated by Judge Jorge Antonio Solis, who retired on May 1, 2016.[3] On September 7, 2016, a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee was held on his nomination.[4] His nomination expired on January 3, 2017, with the end of the 114th Congress.

Renomination to district court under Trump

On January 16, 2019, President Trump announced his intent to renominate Hendrix to serve as a United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas.[5] On January 17, 2019, his nomination was sent to the Senate. President Trump nominated Hendrix to the seat vacated by Judge Samuel Ray Cummings, who took senior status on December 31, 2014.[6] On April 4, 2019, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 22–0 vote.[7] On July 30, 2019, the Senate voted 85–5 to invoke cloture on his nomination.[8] His nomination was confirmed later that day by a vote of 89–1.[9] He received his judicial commission on August 8, 2019.

See also

• Barack Obama judicial appointment controversies

References

1. "President Obama Nominates Six to Serve on the United States District Courts" White House, March 15, 2015
3. "Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate" White House, March 15, 2015
4. United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Nominations for September 7, 2016
5. "President Donald J. Trump Announces Nineteenth Wave of Judicial Nominees" White House, January 16, 2019 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
6. "Nine Nominations Sent to the Senate", White House, January 17, 2019
7. Results of Executive Business Meeting – April 4, 2019, Senate Judiciary Committee
8. "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: James Wesley Hendrix to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Texas)". United States Senate. July 30, 2019.
9. "On the Nomination (Confirmation: James Wesley Hendrix, of Texas, to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Texas)". United States Congress. July 30, 2019.

External links

• James Wesley Hendrix at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.