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 "excerpt": "Jerry E. Smith, born Jerry Edwin Smith in 1946, is an American judge on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1987.",
 "snippet": "Jerry E. Smith, born Jerry Edwin Smith in 1946, is an American judge on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1987.",
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 "markdown": "# Jerry E. Smith\n\nJerry Edwin Smith (born 1946) is an American jurist serving as a judge on the [United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-states-court-of-appeals-for-the-fifth-circuit) since 1987. He was appointed by President Ronald Reagan and confirmed by the Senate by voice vote in December 1987. He has served on the court for more than three decades and remains an active circuit judge.<sup>[1](https://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/about-the-court/fifth-circuit-judges)</sup>\n\n| Fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> |\n| Appointed by | Ronald Reagan<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> |\n| Confirmed | December 19, 1987, by voice vote<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> |\n| Born | 1946 in Del Rio, Texas<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> |\n| Education | B.A., Yale University, 1969; J.D., Yale Law School, 1972<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> |\n\n## Early life and education\n\nSmith was born in 1946 in [Del Rio, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/del-rio-texas).<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> He received a [Bachelor of Arts](https://www.edgepedia.org/bachelor-of-arts) from Yale University in 1969 and a [Juris Doctor](https://www.edgepedia.org/juris-doctor) from Yale Law School in 1972.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup>\n\n## Legal career\n\nAfter law school, Smith served as a law clerk to Judge Halbert O. Woodward of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas from 1972 to 1973.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> He then practiced law in Houston, Texas, from 1973 to 1984; a biographical account states that he practiced with the firm Fulbright & Jaworski and became a partner there in 1981.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.baffc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/JES-bio.pdf)</sup>\n\nDuring his years in private practice, Smith held several public positions. He served as a director of the Harris County Housing Authority from 1978 to 1980, as a special assistant attorney general for the State of Texas from 1981 to 1982, and as chairman of the Houston Civil Service Commission from 1982 to 1984.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> From 1984 to 1987, he was the city attorney for the [City of Houston](https://www.edgepedia.org/houston).<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup>\n\n## Federal judicial service\n\nPresident [Ronald Reagan](https://www.edgepedia.org/ronald-reagan) nominated Smith to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on June 2, 1987.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> The Senate confirmed him by voice vote on December 19, 1987, and he received his commission on December 21, 1987.<sup>[2](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)</sup> He has served as a circuit judge on the court since then.<sup>[3](https://www.baffc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/JES-bio.pdf)</sup>\n\nWhile on the bench, Smith served as Chair of the Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of [Evidence](https://www.edgepedia.org/evidence-law).<sup>[3](https://www.baffc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/JES-bio.pdf)</sup> A biographical account reports that his former law clerks include three United States circuit judges, a justice of the Texas Supreme Court, a United States Senator, and other officials.<sup>[3](https://www.baffc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/JES-bio.pdf)</sup>\n\n## Notable cases\n\nIn November 2025, Smith served on a three-judge district court panel in a challenge to Texas's redrawn congressional maps. The panel's majority, in an opinion by District Judge Jeffrey Brown joined by Judge David Guaderrama, preliminarily enjoined the map after finding that challengers were likely to prevail on their racial-gerrymandering claim; On April 27, 2026, the Supreme Court reversed the district court's preliminary injunction, permanently upholding the use of Texas's redrawn congressional map.<sup>[4](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)</sup> Smith dissented in a 104-page opinion, arguing that the map had been drawn for \"partisan gain\" rather than on account of race, and criticizing the majority for publishing its opinion without waiting for his dissent.<sup>[4](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)</sup> In his dissent, Smith wrote that the majority's conduct was \"the most outrageous conduct by a judge\" he had encountered in his years on the federal bench, and he described Brown as an \"unskilled magician\" who prefers \"living in a fantasyland.\"<sup>[4](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)</sup> Smith also repeatedly invoked the financier [George Soros](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-soros), writing that \"the public is entitled to know who's really driving this bus.\"<sup>[4](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)</sup> The news outlet Balls and Strikes characterized the dissent as antisemitic, an analysis reflecting Smith's invocation of George Soros 17 times, his claims that Soros funded the plaintiffs' expert and legal team, and his statement that the majority handed Soros a victory \"on a silver platter\"; no response from Smith was reported. The National Law Journal described the dissent as unusually scathing, saying Smith accused his colleagues of cutting him out of the deliberative process.<sup>[4](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[5](https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2025/11/20/in-scathing-dissent-judge-says-colleagues-cut-him-from-deliberative-process-/)</sup>\n\n## References\n\n1. [Fifth Circuit Judges](https://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/about-the-court/fifth-circuit-judges)\n2. [Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387971)\n3. [Judge Smith Biography](https://www.baffc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/JES-bio.pdf)\n4. [Texas Gerrymandering Case Prompts Judge Jerry Smith to Crash Out](https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/jerry-smith-texas-opinion-crashout/)\n5. [news page](https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2025/11/20/in-scathing-dissent-judge-says-colleagues-cut-him-from-deliberative-process-/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Law and justice › Courts and legal practice › Legal biographies › United States judges › US federal judges › Article III judges (district and appellate) › United States courts of appeals judges › Surnames O to S*\n\n*Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 28, 2026; Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Sep 28, 2026; Sep 29, 2026 · Last review: Sep 29, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n",
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 "credit": "\"Jerry E. Smith\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/jerry-e-smith. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.",
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 "speakable": "Jerry E. Smith, born Jerry Edwin Smith in 1946, is an American judge on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1987."
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