--- title: "George Carol Hanks Jr. | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/george-carol-hanks-jr" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # George Carol Hanks Jr. U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas - State: Texas - Role: Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Judge, District Court, S.D. Texas, 2015-present - United States District Judge for the Southern District of Texas, appointed by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate in 2015 - Federal Service: U.S. Magistrate Judge, Southern District of Texas (2010–2015) U.S. District Judge — appointed Sept - State Judicial Service: Judge, 157th Civil District Court of Texas (2001–2002) Justice, First Court of Appeals of Texas (2002–2010) - Judge, Texas District Court, One Hundred and Fifty-Seventh Judicial District, 2001-2002 - Private Practice: Associate at Fulbright & Jaworski (1991–1996); shareholder at Wickliff & Hall, PC (1996–2000) - Law clerk, Hon. Simeon Lake, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas, 1989-1991 ### Education - judicial studies — Duke University — LL.M. (2014) - B.A. (summa cum laude, first in class) — Louisiana State University, 1986 J.D. — Harvard Law School, 1989 LL.M. — Duke University School of Law, 2014 - Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College — B.A. (1986) ### Additional information - 18, 2014; confirmed April 20, 2015, by Senate vote 91–0; commissioned April 22, 2015 Assigned to the Galveston Division of the Southern District of Texas - Magistrate, District Court, S.D. Texas, 2010-2015 - Private practice, Houston, TX, 1991-2000 - Date of birth: 1965-01-01 - Born: September 25, 1964, in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana - handling a variety of federal cases, including civil litigation, commercial disputes, and other matters within the district’s jurisdiction. - Chambers: 515 Rusk St., Room 11535, Houston, TX 77002 Contact (case-related): Kimberly Picota, Case Manager — cm4147@ - Birth place: Breaux Bridge, LA ## 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 ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394776) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394776) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394776) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8581/george-carol-hanks-jr/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/8581/george-carol-hanks-jr/) - [Wikidata: George C. Hanks, Jr.](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18098247) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/george-carol-hanks-jr", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/george-carol-hanks-jr", "name": "George Carol Hanks Jr. | KnowJudges", "description": "George Carol Hanks Jr., U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. 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Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.