--- title: "Donna Roth | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/donna-roth" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Donna Roth Texas 295th District Court · District Judge, Harris County 295th Civil District Court ## Profile - Court: Texas 295th District Court - State: Texas - Role: District Judge, Harris County 295th Civil District Court - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-28 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Presiding Judge, Texas 295th Judicial District Court, Houston, TX, 2019-2022 - Partner, Thurlow, Roth and Garriga, P.C., Houston, TX, 1993-1994 - She became a partner at Thurlow, Roth and Garriga P.C. in 1993 and founded her own firm, Roth & Associates, in 1994, which now employs three attorneys, including her daughter, and operates offices in Houston, Texas, and Seattle, Washington. ### Education - cum laude — South Texas College — 1987 - South Texas College of Law — J.D. (1987) - St John's University-New York — B.A. (1983) ### Additional information - Since taking the bench in January 2019, Roth has doubled the number of jury trials compared to her predecessor and has tried more jury cases than any of her civil judge colleagues. - Owner, Roth & Associates, Houston, TX, 1994-2018 - Practitioner, Thurlow, Roth and Garriga, P.C., Houston, TX, 1987-1993 - Civil litigation firm, Houston — began practicing in September 1987 - The court also has injunctive and declaratory powers, allowing it to stop parties from unlawful actions and declare legal rights. - It does not handle criminal, family, probate, or immigration cases. - She has maintained one of the lowest dockets in her division, reduced hearing wait times from eight weeks to two to three weeks, and ensures that all parties are treated fairly and with dignity. - Her extensive trial experience includes over 40 jury trials and an equal number of non-jury cases, along with thousands of other cases handled from start to finish. - Donna Roth presides over the 295th Civil District Court in Texas, which handles all civil cases at any dollar level, including contracts, personal injury, property disputes, employment and discrimination cases, business dissolutions, and attorney disbarment matters. - She is board certified in Personal Injury Trial Law and a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### courtroom technology Scope: courtroom specific The courtroom provides laptop inputs, a document camera, a projector, attorney and witness displays, jury-box screens, annotation tools, and simultaneous video-and-exhibit presentation; material not yet admitted should not be displayed to the jury. Evidence excerpt: If a document is not yet in evidence, you can display the document at the Witness Stand and Attorneys' screens only; when the document is admitted into evidence, you can press "All" to display it to the jury. [Courtroom Equipment](https://www.justex.net/JustexAPI/api/Articles/CourtSectionByID/?CourtSectionTextID=142) Source checked: 2026-07-28 ### civil remote appearances Scope: statewide In civil district and county court proceedings, the court may permit or require electronic participation after appropriate notice; compelled electronic participation for oral-testimony proceedings requires good cause or party agreement, and a jury trial requires party agreement. Evidence excerpt: Upon appropriate notice by a party or the court, a court may allow or require a participant to appear at a court proceeding by videoconference, teleconference, or other available electronic means, except as otherwise provided in (2). [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21d, Appearances at Court Proceedings](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### civil recording and broadcasting Scope: statewide Civil district and county trial courts may permit courtroom recording or broadcasting only under Supreme Court guidelines, with the required party and witness consent, or for ceremonial proceedings. Evidence excerpt: A trial court may permit broadcasting, televising, recording, or photographing of proceedings in the courtroom only in the following circumstances: [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 18c, Recording and Broadcasting of Court Proceedings](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.justex.net/courts/civil) - [Official roster](https://www.justex.net/courts/civil) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16021/donna-roth/) - [Harris County Civil District Courts official judicial roster](https://www.justex.net/courts/civil) - [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21d, Appearances at Court Proceedings](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf) - [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 18c, Recording and Broadcasting of Court Proceedings](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf) - [Courtroom Equipment](https://www.justex.net/JustexAPI/api/Articles/CourtSectionByID/?CourtSectionTextID=142) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16021/donna-roth/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/donna-roth", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/donna-roth", "name": "Donna Roth | KnowJudges", "description": "Donna Roth, Texas 295th District Court. 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Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26. - [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21d, Appearances at Court Proceedings](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-a5f587f769df9f3231ef4f9a) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1462948/texas-rules-of-civil-procedure-july-1-2026.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.