--- title: "Orlando Luis Garcia | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/orlando-luis-garcia" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Orlando Luis Garcia U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas · Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the Western 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, W.D. Texas, 1994-present - United States district judge for the Western District of Texas, appointed in 1994 by President Bill Clinton, and former Chief Judge of that court from 2016 to 2022 - Early Career: Private practice in San Antonio, TX (1978–1990) Texas House of Representatives (1983–1991) Justice, Texas Fourth Court of Appeals (1991–1992) ### Education - B.A., University of Texas at Austin (1975) J.D., University of Texas School of Law (1978) ### Additional information - Chief Judge: January 1, 2016 – November 18, 2022 (retired at age 70) - 2020: Addressed excessive patent filings in Waco by ordering random assignment of such cases, ending default assignment to Judge Alan Albright. - 2017: Issued preliminary injunction against Texas Senate Bill 4 (sanctuary cities law), halting partial enforcement; later partially reversed by the Fifth Circuit. - 2014: Overturned Texas ban on same-sex marriage, ruling it unconstitutional; stayed pending appeal. - Confirmation: March 10, 1994, by the U.S. Senate - Nomination: November 19, 1993, to replace Emilio M. Garza - State representative, Texas, 1983-1991 - Born: November 18, 1952, in Jim Wells County, Texas - Date of birth: 1952-01-01 - Birth place: Jim Wells County, 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 ### electronic trial exhibits Scope: courtwide The Western District of Texas publishes JERS guidance for electronically capturing trial evidence and provides evidence-presentation equipment to members of the bar practicing in the district. Evidence excerpt: The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas uses the Jury Evidence Recording System (JERS) to capture evidence electronically during a trial. The Court provides evidence presentation equipment to any member of the bar practicing within the Western District of Texas. [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### electronic exhibit submission Scope: courtwide For JERS electronic exhibit submission, the Western District of Texas publishes a single-storage-device requirement and directs parties to submit files by the deadline set by the assigned courtroom deputy. Evidence excerpt: All files must be provided on a single storage device such as a CD, DVD, or USB drive. ... All files must be submitted based on the deadline set by the CRD associated with your case. [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### 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/1381036) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1381036) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1381036) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1149/orlando-luis-garcia/) - [JERS, Jury Evidence Recording System](https://www.txwd.uscourts.gov/for-attorneys/jers-jury-evidence-recording-system) - [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/1149/orlando-luis-garcia/) - [Wikidata: Orlando Luis Garcia](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7103121) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/orlando-luis-garcia", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/orlando-luis-garcia", "name": "Orlando Luis Garcia | KnowJudges", "description": "Orlando Luis Garcia, U.S. District Court for the Western 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.