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Texas Supreme Court Justice Boyd vacancy (September 2025)
| Texas Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Boyd vacancy |
| Date: September 1, 2025 |
| Status: Seat vacant |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: To be determined |
| Date: To be determined |
Texas Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd retired on September 1, 2025. Boyd's replacement will be Governor Abbott's (R) eighth nominee to the nine-member supreme court.
In Texas, state supreme court justices are elected in partisan elections. There are eight states that use this selection method. To read more about the partisan election of judges, click here.
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement who must be confirmed by the Texas Senate. The appointee serves until the next general election, in which he or she may compete to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.[1]
Ballotpedia has compiled the following resources on the process to fill the Texas Supreme Court vacancy:
- An overview of the selection process.
- An overview of the court following the vacancy.
- An overview of the justice who left office.
- A list of other state supreme court appointments in 2025.
Appointee candidates and nominations
Ballotpedia will post information on candidates and prospective appointees as information becomes available. If you know of information that should be included here, please email us.
The selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Texas
In Texas, state supreme court justices are elected in partisan elections. There are eight states that use this selection method. To read more about the partisan election of judges, click here.
Makeup of the court
- See also: Texas Supreme Court
Justices
Following Boyd's retirement, the Texas Supreme Court included the following members:
| ■ Jimmy Blacklock | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2025 | |
| ■ James Sullivan | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2025 | |
| ■ Debra Lehrmann | Appointed by Gov. Rick Perry (R) in 2010 | |
| ■ John Devine | Elected in 2012 | |
| ■ Rebeca Huddle | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2020 | |
| ■ Jane Bland | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2019 | |
| ■ Brett Busby | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2019 | |
| ■ Evan Young | Appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in 2021 |
About the court
Founded in 1836, the Texas Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort for civil matters and has nine judgeships. The current chief of the court is Jimmy Blacklock.
As of January 2025, all nine judges on the court identified with the Republican Party.
The Texas Supreme Court meets in Austin, Texas.[2]
In Texas, state supreme court justices are elected in partisan elections. There are eight states that use this selection method. To read more about the partisan election of judges, click here.
About Justice Boyd
- See also: Jeffrey S. Boyd
Education
Boyd earned an undergraduate degree in biblical studies, graduating cum laude, from Abilene Christian University in 1983.[3] He earned a J.D., graduating summa cum laude, from Pepperdine University in 1991.[4][5]
Career
- 2012-2025: Justice, Texas Supreme Court
- 2011-2012: Chief of staff, Governor Rick Perry
- 2011: General counsel, Governor Rick Perry
- 2003-2011: Senior partner, Thompson & Knight L.L.P.
- 2000-2003: Deputy attorney general, Texas Attorney General's Office
- 1992-2000: Associate/partner, Thompson & Knight L.L.P.
- 1991-1992: Law clerk, Judge Thomas M. Reavley, U.S. Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit[4][6]
Other state supreme court appointments in 2025
- See also: State supreme court vacancies, 2025
The following table lists vacancies on state supreme courts that opened in 2025. Click the link under the Court column for a particular vacancy for more information on that vacancy.
Click here for vacancies that opened in 2024.
| 2025 State Supreme Court Vacancies |
|---|
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedTXgeneral - ↑ Texas Judicial Branch, "Supreme Court," accessed August 31, 2021
- ↑ Facebook, "Justice Jeff Boyd, About," accessed January 21, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Texas Judicial Branch, "Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd," accessed August 2, 2021
- ↑ State Bar of Texas, "Find a Lawyer, Mr. Jeffrey S. Boyd," accessed January 20, 2014
- ↑ Justice Jeff Boyd, "Meet Jeff Boyd," accessed January 20, 2014
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Federal courts:
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas
State courts:
Texas Supreme Court • Texas Court of Appeals • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals • Texas District Courts • Texas County Courts • Texas County Courts at Law • Texas Statutory Probate Courts • Texas Justice of the Peace Courts
State resources:
Courts in Texas • Texas judicial elections • Judicial selection in Texas
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