--- title: "Melinda Harmon | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melinda-harmon" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Melinda Harmon 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: senior - 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, 1989-present - 1989–2018: Judge, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, appointed by President George H.W. Bush, confirmed by the Senate on May 18, 1989 - Judge, Harris County Texas Two Hundred and Eightieth District Court, Civil Division, 1988-1989 - 1987–1989: Judge, Harris County, Texas 200th District Court (appointed by Governor, later elected) - Law clerk, Hon. John V. Singleton, Jr., U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas, 1973-1975 - She held the role of a law clerk to Judge John Virgil Singleton Jr. (S.D. Texas) from 1973–1975, then worked 12 years as a trial attorney for Exxon Corporation ### Education - A.B. from Radcliffe College in 1969, followed by a J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law in 1972. ### Additional information - Since March 31, 2018: Senior Judge (inactive status). - Harmon handled over 8,000 federal cases between 1981–2018, with a median case resolution time of about 284 days. - Trial attorney, Litigation Section, Exxon Corporation, Houston, TX, 1975-1988 - Date of birth: 1946-01-01 - Of 322 appellate reviews, 272 were affirmed. - Recognized for her meticulous case management, calm authority, and adherence to statutory and procedural rules. - Cited for her role in shaping securities litigation and corporate accountability law, and for setting a standard of judicial competence in the Southern District of Texas. - In summary: Melinda Harmon’s judicial career is defined by her leadership in some of the most complex corporate and securities cases in U.S. history, her methodical approach to litigation, and her enduring influence on federal judicial practice. - Birth place: Port Arthur, 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 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/1381836) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1381836) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1381836) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1368/melinda-harmon/) - [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/1368/melinda-harmon/) - [Wikidata: Melinda Harmon](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6812470) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melinda-harmon", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melinda-harmon", "name": "Melinda Harmon | KnowJudges", "description": "Melinda Harmon, 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.