--- title: "Simeon Timothy Lake III | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/simeon-timothy-lake-iii" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-09" --- # Simeon Timothy Lake III 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, 1988-present - Senior United States district judge for the Southern District of Texas, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 and elevated to senior status in 2019 - Early Career: Private practice in Houston, TX (1969–1970, 1972–1988) U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps prosecutor in Vietnam (1970–1971) - Current Role: Senior Judge, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas ### Education - B.A. in Political Science, Texas A&M University, 1966 J.D., University of Texas School of Law, 1969 — graduated first in his class ### Additional information - Lake handled over 10,700 district court cases from 1976–2026, with a median case duration of about 219 days. - Senior Status: July 5, 2019 - Member, Judicial Conference of the United States, 2007-2010 - Appointed: March 30, 1988, to replace Ross N. Sterling - Commissioned: August 12, 1988 - Confirmed: August 11, 1988, by the U.S. Senate (voice vote) - Private practice, Houston, Texas, 1969-1970, 1972-1988 - Born: 1944, Chicago, Illinois - Date of birth: 1944-01-01 - His appellate record shows most decisions were affirmed. - Birth place: Chicago, IL ## 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/1383571) - [Official roster](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1383571) - [Federal Judicial Center biography](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1383571) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/1840/simeon-timothy-lake-iii/) - [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/1840/simeon-timothy-lake-iii/) - [Judge Simeon Timothy Lake III](https://www.fjc.gov/node/1383571) - [Wikidata: Sim Lake](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16106698) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/simeon-timothy-lake-iii", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/simeon-timothy-lake-iii", "name": "Simeon Timothy Lake III | KnowJudges", "description": "Simeon Timothy Lake III, 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.