--- title: "Robert Lee Pitman | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/robert-lee-pitman" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Robert Lee Pitman 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, 2014-present - American federal judge serving on the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas since December 19, 2014 - U.S. District Judge appointed by President Barack Obama after nomination on June 26, 2014, and Senate confirmation on December 16, 2014. - U.S. attorney for the Western District of Texas, 2011-2014 - U.S. Attorney (2011–2014): Led the district’s first anti-terrorism task force after 9/11. - U.S. Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas, 2003-2011 - Assistant U.S. Attorney (1990–2003): Western District of Texas; held the role of interim U.S. Attorney (2001) and deputy U.S. Attorney (2001–2003) - Private Practice (1989–1990): Associate at Fulbright & Jaworski, Houston, TX - Law clerk, Hon. David O. Belew, Jr., U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas, 1988-1989 - Adjunct Professor: University of Texas School of Law, teaching federal criminal law ### Education - M.St. in Legal Research, University of Oxford (2011) - University of Texas School of Law — J.D. (1988) - in Business Administration, Abilene Christian University — B.S. (1985) ### Additional information - interim U.S. attorney, 2001-present - In 2021, Judge Pitman temporarily blocked enforcement of Texas’ abortion ban in a federal case. - He has been recognized for his judicial service and professional integrity, with the American Bar Association rating him “Unanimously Well Qualified” for his 2014 nomination. - U.S. Magistrate Judge (2003–2011): Ranked highest in Austin Bar Association judicial polls. - Private practice, Austin, TX, 1989-1990 - Born 1962 in Fort Worth, Texas. - Date of birth: 1962-01-01 - His rulings often address federal criminal law, civil litigation, and administrative matters within his jurisdiction. - He presides over cases in the San Antonio, Austin, and Waco divisions of the Western District of Texas. - His official court page lists his contact details and standing orders for various case types. - Pitman is the youngest of five children. - Official site: U.S. District Court – Robert Pitman. - Birth place: Fort Worth, 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/1394761) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394761) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1394761) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2573/robert-lee-pitman/) - [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/2573/robert-lee-pitman/) - [Wikidata: Robert L. Pitman](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7346620) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/robert-lee-pitman", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/robert-lee-pitman", "name": "Robert Lee Pitman | KnowJudges", "description": "Robert Lee Pitman, 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.