Patrick Higginbotham
Encyclopedia
Patrick Errol Higginbotham (born 1938 in McCalla, Alabama
) is a federal judge
on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
. In 2005, he moved his chambers from Dallas, Texas
to Austin, Texas
.
on a tennis
scholarship. He received a B.A.
degree in 1960 and an LL.B.
degree in 1961. He served in the United States Air Force
JAG Corps
and practiced law in Dallas before being appointed to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
by President
Gerald Ford
in 1975. When appointed, he was the youngest sitting federal judge. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan
appointed him to the Fifth Circuit.
In 1986, when the nomination of Robert Bork
to the Supreme Court of the United States
was flailing, Higginbotham was widely considered the leading replacement candidate. After senators from the South came out in support of his nomination, the Reagan administration, unwilling to allow the senators to both prevent the appointment of Bork and dictate the next nominee, declined to nominate Higginbotham. The nomination eventually went to Justice Anthony Kennedy
.
For many years, Higginbotham was a faculty member at the Federal Judicial Center
and, as an appointee of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, the chairman of the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules. He served as president of the American Inns of Court Foundation
, and in 1996 the Dallas chapter of that organization renamed itself after him. He has been a leading proponent and former chairman of The Center for American and International Law
, a Dallas-based organization which aims to train foreign and domestic lawyers and police officers, a Fellow of the American Bar Association
, chairman of its Appellate Judges Conference, member of the Board of Editors of the ABA Journal
, and advisor to the National Center for State Courts on its study of habeas corpus. He is also a lifetime member of the American Law Institute
and a member of the Board of Overseers, Institute of Civil Justice, RAND Corporation.
Higginbotham has published a number of articles in law reviews and newspapers. He is also a frequent speaker on various legal topics, particularly the death penalty and the decline of jury trials, having lectured at places including the Universities of Alabama, Chicago, Texas, Texas Tech
, Columbia, Duke, and Penn, as well as Case Western, Northwestern, Utah, Loyola, Hofstra, the National Science Foundation, The American College of Trial Lawyers and the National Institute of Trial Advocacy.
Many of Higginbotham's clerks later clerked on the Supreme Court. His former clerks include Princeton University Provost Chris Eisgruber, University of Pennsylvania Law School
Professor Stephanos Bibas, University of Michigan Law School
Professor Kyle Logue, New York University School of Law
Professor Roderick Hills, University of Texas School of Law
Professor Henry Hu, George Washington University Law School, Professor Jay Kesan University of Illinois College of Law, Professor Michael Abramowicz, George Mason University School of Law
Professor Nelson Lund, and Adam K. Mortara of Bartlit, Beck, Herman, Palenchar & Scott LLP and the University of Chicago Law School
.
on August 28, 2006, but he currently maintains a full workload on the court in addition to teaching courses in Constitutional Law
and Federal Courts at St. Mary's University School of Law
in San Antonio, Texas
. He has also taught at the University of Texas School of Law
, the University of Alabama School of Law
, the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law
, and the Texas Tech University School of Law
. The University of Alabama School of Law maintains an endowed scholarship in his name. He is married to Elizabeth O'Neal Higginbotham. They have two daughters, Anne Elizabeth and Patricia Lynn. . Patricia is married to Frank M. Lujan and have three sons (Patrick, Frankie, and Bradley).The Judge and Elizabeth live on their ranch in Blanco, Texas.
Judge Higginbotham recently agreed to teach Constitutional Law II for the fall semester in 2011 at Southern Methodist University's Dedman School of Law. Judge Higginbotham replaced Linda Eads who was scheduled to teach the class but was promoted shortly before the semester began to Associate Provost at the University.
McCalla, Alabama
McCalla is an unincorporated community in Jefferson and Tuscaloosa Counties, Alabama, United States, southwest of Bessemer and the geographic terminus of the Appalachian Mountains.- Recreation :...
) is a federal judge
Federal judge
Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state / provincial / local level.-Brazil:In Brazil, federal judges of first instance are chosen exclusively by public contest...
on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* Eastern District of Louisiana* Middle District of Louisiana...
. In 2005, he moved his chambers from Dallas, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
.
Background
Higginbotham attended the University of AlabamaUniversity of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
on a tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
scholarship. He received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in 1960 and an LL.B.
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
degree in 1961. He served in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
JAG Corps
Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Air Force
The Judge Advocate General's Corps also known as the "JAG Corps" or "JAG" is the legal arm of the United States Air Force.- History :The United States Air Force became a separate military service in September 1947. On 25 June 1948, the Congress established an office of The Judge Advocate General ...
and practiced law in Dallas before being appointed to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas is a United States district court. Its first judge, Andrew Phelps McCormick, was appointed to the court on April 10, 1879. The court convenes in Dallas, Texas with divisions in Fort Worth, Amarillo, Abilene, Lubbock, San Angelo...
by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
in 1975. When appointed, he was the youngest sitting federal judge. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
appointed him to the Fifth Circuit.
In 1986, when the nomination of Robert Bork
Robert Bork
Robert Heron Bork is an American legal scholar who has advocated the judicial philosophy of originalism. Bork formerly served as Solicitor General, Acting Attorney General, and judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
to the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
was flailing, Higginbotham was widely considered the leading replacement candidate. After senators from the South came out in support of his nomination, the Reagan administration, unwilling to allow the senators to both prevent the appointment of Bork and dictate the next nominee, declined to nominate Higginbotham. The nomination eventually went to Justice Anthony Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
.
For many years, Higginbotham was a faculty member at the Federal Judicial Center
Federal Judicial Center
The Federal Judicial Center is the education and research agency of the United States federal courts. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1967, at the recommendation of the Judicial Conference of the United States....
and, as an appointee of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, the chairman of the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules. He served as president of the American Inns of Court Foundation
American Inns of Court Foundation
American Inns of Court are designed to improve the skills, professionalism and ethics of the bench and bar. An American Inn of Court is an amalgam of judges, lawyers, and in some cases, law professors and law students...
, and in 1996 the Dallas chapter of that organization renamed itself after him. He has been a leading proponent and former chairman of The Center for American and International Law
The Center for American and International Law
Formerly known as The Southwestern Legal Foundation, The Center for American and International Law is a non-profit organization that provides continuing education for lawyers, judges, and law enforcement personnel...
, a Dallas-based organization which aims to train foreign and domestic lawyers and police officers, a Fellow of the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
, chairman of its Appellate Judges Conference, member of the Board of Editors of the ABA Journal
ABA Journal
The ABA Journal is a monthly legal trade magazine and the flagship publication of the American Bar Association. It claims to be "read by half of the nation's 1 million lawyers every month"...
, and advisor to the National Center for State Courts on its study of habeas corpus. He is also a lifetime member of the American Law Institute
American Law Institute
The American Law Institute was established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of American common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. The ALI drafts, approves, and publishes Restatements of the Law, Principles of the Law, model codes, and other proposals for law...
and a member of the Board of Overseers, Institute of Civil Justice, RAND Corporation.
Higginbotham has published a number of articles in law reviews and newspapers. He is also a frequent speaker on various legal topics, particularly the death penalty and the decline of jury trials, having lectured at places including the Universities of Alabama, Chicago, Texas, Texas Tech
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
, Columbia, Duke, and Penn, as well as Case Western, Northwestern, Utah, Loyola, Hofstra, the National Science Foundation, The American College of Trial Lawyers and the National Institute of Trial Advocacy.
Many of Higginbotham's clerks later clerked on the Supreme Court. His former clerks include Princeton University Provost Chris Eisgruber, University of Pennsylvania Law School
University of Pennsylvania Law School
The University of Pennsylvania Law School, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania. A member of the Ivy League, it is among the oldest and most selective law schools in the nation. It is currently ranked 7th overall by U.S. News & World Report,...
Professor Stephanos Bibas, University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...
Professor Kyle Logue, New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
Professor Roderick Hills, University of Texas School of Law
University of Texas School of Law
The University of Texas School of Law, also known as UT Law, is an ABA-certified American law school located on the University of Texas at Austin campus. The law school has been in operation since the founding of the University in 1883. It was one of only two schools at the University when it was...
Professor Henry Hu, George Washington University Law School, Professor Jay Kesan University of Illinois College of Law, Professor Michael Abramowicz, George Mason University School of Law
George Mason University School of Law
George Mason University School of Law is the law school of George Mason University, a state university in Virginia, United States...
Professor Nelson Lund, and Adam K. Mortara of Bartlit, Beck, Herman, Palenchar & Scott LLP and the University of Chicago Law School
University of Chicago Law School
The University of Chicago Law School was founded in 1902 as the graduate school of law at the University of Chicago and is among the most prestigious and selective law schools in the world. The U.S. News & World Report currently ranks it fifth among U.S...
.
Notable Opinions
- In In re LTV Securities Litigation, 88 F.R.D. 134 (N.D. Tex. 1980), Higginbotham formulated one of the earliest versions of the "fraud on the market" theory of loss causation, using language later quoted by the Supreme Court when it adopted the theory, see Basic, Inc. v. Levinson, 485 U.S. 224, 244 (1988).
- In Schultea v. Wood, 47 F.3d 1427 (5th Cir. 1995) (en banc), Higginbotham allowed under Rule 7 notice pleading in potential qualified immunity cases but required, in reply to an allegation of qualified immunity, more detailed pleading, a tack later approved by the Supreme Court.
- In Flores v. City of Boerne, 73 F.3d 1352 (5th Cir. 1996), Higginbotham upheld the Religious Freedom Restoration Act against the claim that the Act exceeded Congress's powers under the Fourteenth AmendmentFourteenth Amendment to the United States ConstitutionThe Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.Its Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship that overruled the Dred Scott v...
. The Supreme Court later reversed the decision. - In Doe v. Beaumont Independent School District, 240 F.3d 462 (5th Cir. 2001) (en banc), Higginbotham found that public school students and their parents had standing to challenge district's "Clergy in Schools" volunteer counseling program and that facts issues required reversal of summary judgment to defendants.
- In Van Orden v. Perry, 351 F.3d 173 (5th Cir. 2003), Higginbotham upheld against an Establishment Clause challenge a Ten Commandments display on the Texas State Capitol, concluding that its secular history and purpose rendered it constitutional. The Supreme Court later affirmed.
- Between 2000 and 2006, Higginbotham, sitting as the Circuit Judge along with two district judges in a Voting Rights ActVoting Rights ActThe Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of national legislation in the United States that outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans in the U.S....
three-judge panel, twice changed Texas's Congressional districts. His later effort, which struck a balance between competing interests while hewing closely to the Texas legislature's intent, was widely hailed.
Present
Higginbotham assumed senior statusSenior status
Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges, and judges in some state court systems. After federal judges have reached a certain combination of age and years of service on the federal courts, they are allowed to assume senior status...
on August 28, 2006, but he currently maintains a full workload on the court in addition to teaching courses in Constitutional Law
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
and Federal Courts at St. Mary's University School of Law
St. Mary's University School of Law
St. Mary's University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of St. Mary's University. The law school is located in San Antonio, Texas, and is the oldest Catholic law school in the American Southwest. The University is a private Catholic university...
in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. He has also taught at the University of Texas School of Law
University of Texas School of Law
The University of Texas School of Law, also known as UT Law, is an ABA-certified American law school located on the University of Texas at Austin campus. The law school has been in operation since the founding of the University in 1883. It was one of only two schools at the University when it was...
, the University of Alabama School of Law
University of Alabama School of Law
The University of Alabama School of Law located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is a nationally ranked top-tier law school and the only public law school in the state. In total, it is one of five law schools in the state, and one of three that are ABA accredited.The diverse student body, of approximately...
, the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law
Dedman School of Law
The Southern Methodist University School of Law, commonly referred to as SMU Law School or Dedman School of Law is a prominent professional graduate law school located in Dallas, Texas. Founded in February 1925, the school remains the only law school in Dallas...
, and the Texas Tech University School of Law
Texas Tech University School of Law
The Texas Tech University School of Law is an ABA-accredited law school located on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. Known nationally for their continual success in trial advocacy competitions, the school focuses on forming practical lawyers who are ready to practice law upon...
. The University of Alabama School of Law maintains an endowed scholarship in his name. He is married to Elizabeth O'Neal Higginbotham. They have two daughters, Anne Elizabeth and Patricia Lynn. . Patricia is married to Frank M. Lujan and have three sons (Patrick, Frankie, and Bradley).The Judge and Elizabeth live on their ranch in Blanco, Texas.
Judge Higginbotham recently agreed to teach Constitutional Law II for the fall semester in 2011 at Southern Methodist University's Dedman School of Law. Judge Higginbotham replaced Linda Eads who was scheduled to teach the class but was promoted shortly before the semester began to Associate Provost at the University.
See also
- George H. W. Bush Supreme Court candidatesGeorge H. W. Bush Supreme Court candidatesSpeculation abounded over potential nominations to the Supreme Court of the United States by George H. W. Bush even before his presidency officially began, given the advanced ages of several justices....