Exclusive Interview With 3 Texas Supreme Court Justices

SAN ANGELO, TX — Three Texas Supreme Court Justices visited the San Angelo LIVE! Studios on May 20. They are Justice Justice Evan A. Young, Place 9; Senior Justice Debra Lehrmann, Place 3; and Justice Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle, Place 5.

In the video above, the justices discuss where the Texas Supreme Court sits in the overall statewide justice system; how Covid impacted the courts statewide; the limitations of using virtual hearings (such as via Zoom) when considering personal rights and liberties; the U.S. Supreme Court leak of Justice Samuel Alito’s Roe vs. Wade; and how the Left and the Right view original intent.

About the justices (in order of their seating in the above video):

Justice Evan A. Young, Place 9

Justice Evan A. Young was appointed to the Texas Supreme Court in November 2021 by Governor Greg Abbott. Justice Young clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and served as Counsel to the Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, during which time he spent nearly a year based at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, helping lead the U.S. Government’s Rule of Law mission. He joined the law firm Baker Botts L.L.P. and served as chair of the firm’s Supreme Court and Constitutional Law practice group. Justice Young, who served as a member of the Texas Judicial Council from 2017 until his appointment to the Supreme Court, is a former chair of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Texas Regional Office, a member of the Supreme Court Advisory Committee, an elected member of the American Law Institute, and an adjunct professor at The University of Texas School of Law. Justice Young received Bachelor of Arts degrees from Duke University and from Oxford University, where he was a British Marshall Scholar, and his law degree from Yale Law School. He is a graduate of Tom C. Clark High School in San Antonio and now resides in Austin with his wife, Tobi, and their daughter.

Justice Debra Lehrmann, Place 3

Justice Debra Lehrmann is the Senior Justice on the Supreme Court of Texas and the Court’s longest-serving woman Justice in Texas history. With a total of almost 35 years of judicial experience, she was a trial judge in Tarrant County for 23 years prior to her appellate service and has served the Bar in leadership capacities on both a state and national level.

She served as the inaugural chair of the State Bar of Texas Child Protection Law Section and is a prior chair of the Family Law Section of the ABA. She is a commissioner on the Uniform Law Commission, a member of the American Law Institute, a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and the American Bar Foundation, a charter member of the Tarrant County Bar Foundation, an emeritus member and past president of the Lloyd Lochridge Inn of Court in Austin, and an emeritus member of the Eldon B. Mahon Inn of Court in Fort Worth.

Justice Lehrmann speaks frequently at continuing legal education events on a broad variety of topics throughout the state and country. She has received numerous awards and recognitions, including the Texas Women Lawyers Pathfinder Award, the Child Protection Law Section Founder’s Award, the Court-Appointed Special Advocates Scott Moore Award in recognition for her service to children who are the subjects of abuse and neglect proceedings, the Texas Bar Foundation’s recognition for Best Law Review Article, and the Judge Eva Barnes Award for dedication and outstanding service to the legal profession.

A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Justice Lehrmann received her undergraduate degree with high honors from The University of Texas, her law degree from UT School of Law, and her LL.M. from Duke University. She and her husband, attorney Greg Lehrmann, have a wonderful family: sons Gregory and Jonathan, both practicing lawyers, daughter-in-law Sarah, and grandchildren Jack and Haley.

Justice Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle, Place 5

Justice Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle was appointed to the Supreme Court of Texas by Governor Greg Abbott in October 2020. She is a native of El Paso, where she grew up and attended Stephen F. Austin High School. Justice Huddle earned her undergraduate degree in political science at Stanford University and taught Spanish for a year before returning to Texas to attend law school. She earned her law degree at the University of Texas School of Law, where she was the recipient of three endowed presidential scholarships and graduated with honors.

Before entering public service, Justice Huddle practiced law at Baker Botts L.L.P., where she handled litigation matters ranging from individual personal injury cases to complex commercial and shareholder disputes and appeals. She was admitted to the firm’s partnership in 2008. In 2011, Justice Huddle was appointed by then Governor Rick Perry to serve as a justice on the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas. She was then elected to that office in 2012. During her tenure at the First Court of Appeals, Justice Huddle authored over 400 reasoned majority opinions and worked with her colleagues to dispose of many hundreds more appeals. Justice Huddle returned to Baker Botts as a partner in 2017, to resume her practice in commercial litigation and appeals. She served as the Partner-in-Charge of the firm’s Houston office beginning in 2018.

Justice Huddle has long been engaged in the community, in bar activities, and in mentoring younger lawyers. While in private practice, she served as a member of Texas’s Judicial Compensation Commission, on behalf of which she testified before a legislative subcommittee. In 2018, she received the Houston Bar Association Appellate Section’s award for Outstanding Judicial Service and Leadership. In 2019, she was named a Woman on the Move by Texas Executive Women. She has served as a member of the board of directors of the Greater Houston Partnership and the Houston Area Women’s Center. She is a Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation and the Houston Bar Foundation. She enjoys mentoring younger lawyers, always encouraging them to strive for excellence and become active leaders within their communities.

Justice Huddle and her husband, Greg, have two daughters. Her term ends December 31, 2022.