Edith Jones

Edith Jones is the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

She graduated from Cornell University in 1971 and received her J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law in 1974. She was in private practice in Houston, Texas from 1974 until 1985, working for the firm of Andrews, Kurth, Campbell & Jones, where she became the firm’s first female partner. She also served as General Counsel for the Republican Party of Texas from 1982-83.

She was nominated to the Fifth Circuit by President Ronald Reagan on February 27, 1985, and confirmed by the United States Senate on April 3, 1985. She received her commission on April 4, 1985, at the age of 36. She became Chief Judge of the Fifth Circuit on January 16, 2006 upon the expiration of the term of Carolyn Dineen King.

She sits on the board of directors of the Boy Scouts of America, the Garland Walker American Inns of Court, and is a member of several American Bar Association committees.