--- title: "Kemper Stephen Williams | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/kemper-stephen-williams" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Kemper Stephen Williams Texas 135th District Court · District Judge ## Profile - Court: Texas 135th District Court - State: Texas - Role: District Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-25 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Kemper Stephen Williams is the elected District Judge for Texas’s 135th District Court, serving since 1995 and re‐elected in every subsequent term through 2020 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 2017-2020 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 2013-2016 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 2009-2012 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 2005-2008 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 2001-2004 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 1997-2000 - Presiding Judge, Texas 135th Judicial District Court, Victoria, TX, 1996-1996 - His office is located at 115 N. Bridge Street, 3rd Floor, Victoria, TX 77901, and the court’s clerk’s phone is +1 (361) 575‐2412 ### Education - B.A., St. Mary’s University (1981) J.D., Baylor University School of Law (1985) - English, magna cum laude — St Mary's University — 1981 ### Additional information - Presiding Judge, Victoria, TX, 2021-2024 - Re‐elected in 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 without opposition. - Appointed to the bench by former Texas Governor George W. Bush in 1995. - Date of birth: 1959-09-27 - Before becoming a judge, Williams practiced law in private practice, specializing in personal injury and insurance defense litigation. - Serves four‐year terms under Texas’s partisan judicial election system. - To serve on Texas district courts, judges must be U.S. citizens, Texas residents, licensed attorneys, and meet residency and experience requirements. - Williams meets all these criteria, having been a practicing lawyer and state judge for over four years before his appointment. - Williams presides over the 135th District Court of Texas, which covers Calhoun, DeWitt, Goliad, Jackson, Refugio, and Victoria counties. - Party affiliation: Registered Republican. - Birth place: Victoria, TX ## 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 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://card.txcourts.gov/directorysearch.aspx) - [Official roster](https://card.txcourts.gov/directorysearch.aspx) - [Texas Office of Court Administration official judicial roster](https://card.txcourts.gov/directorysearch.aspx) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16175/kemper-stephen-williams-iii/) - [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) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16175/kemper-stephen-williams-iii/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/kemper-stephen-williams", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/kemper-stephen-williams", "name": "Kemper Stephen Williams | KnowJudges", "description": "Kemper Stephen Williams, Texas 135th 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.