--- title: "Melody M. Wilkinson | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melody-m-wilkinson" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Melody M. Wilkinson Texas 17th District Court · District Judge, Tarrant County 17th Civil District Court ## Profile - Court: Texas 17th District Court - State: Texas - Role: District Judge, Tarrant County 17th 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 - The elected Judge of Texas’s 17th District Court in Tarrant County, serving since 2009 and currently holding her term through 2028 - Presiding Judge, Texas 17th Judicial District Court, Fort Worth, TX, 2021-2024 - Presiding Judge, Texas 17th Judicial District Court, Fort Worth, TX, 2017-2020 - Presiding Judge, Texas 17th Judicial District Court, Fort Worth, TX, 2013-2016 - Presiding Judge, Texas 17th Judicial District Court, Fort Worth, TX, 2009-2012 ### Education - Texas Tech University School of Law — J.D. (1988) - Government and English — Angelo State University — 1985 ### Additional information - Term ends December 31, 2028. - Elected to the 17th District Court in 2008; re‐elected in 2012, 2016, and 2024. - Admitted to the Texas Bar (1988) and to the U.S. District Courts (Eastern, Western, Northern Texas), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. - Practitioner, Cantey & Hangar LLP, ?-present - Practitioner, Cooley Manion Jones LLP, ?-present - Practitioner, Naman, Howell, Smith & Lee LLP, ?-present - Before joining the bench, she practiced law in Fort Worth, specializing in civil litigation, business law, toxic torts, and employment law. - She has also served in leadership roles such as President of the Texas Young Lawyers Association, President of the Fort Worth–Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association, and President of the Texas Association of District Judges. - Judge Wilkinson has been active in Easter Seals of North Texas, United Cerebral Palsy of Tarrant County, the Sports Advisory Council of Fort Worth, and the Metropolitan YMCA of Fort Worth. - She has also served on advisory councils for Texas Wesleyan School of Law and Texas A&M School of Law. - A native of Tarrant County, she is a member of St. Andrew Catholic Church and has three adult children. - She is registered as a Republican. ## 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 ### trial exhibits and video Scope: courtwide Before trial, parties must mark and exchange exhibits; films and videotaped depositions generally must be disclosed early enough for objections to be heard before trial. Evidence excerpt: Prior to commencement of trial all exhibits will be marked, exchanged and examined by counsel so that the trial will not be delayed by such examination. [Local Rules of the Civil Courts of Tarrant County](https://www.tarrantcountytx.gov/content/dam/main/county-clerk/Civil_Rules.pdf) 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.tarrantcountytx.gov/en/civil-courts/district-courts/17th-district-court.html) - [Official roster](https://www.tarrantcountytx.gov/en/civil-courts/district-courts/17th-district-court.html) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16174/melody-m-wilkinson/) - [Tarrant County 17th Civil District Court official judicial roster](https://www.tarrantcountytx.gov/en/civil-courts/district-courts/17th-district-court.html) - [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) - [Local Rules of the Civil Courts of Tarrant County](https://www.tarrantcountytx.gov/content/dam/main/county-clerk/Civil_Rules.pdf) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/16174/melody-m-wilkinson/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melody-m-wilkinson", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/melody-m-wilkinson", "name": "Melody M. 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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.