--- title: "Stuti Patel | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/stuti-patel-district-400th-district-court-texas" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-08-02" --- # Stuti Patel 400th District Court · District Associate Judge ## Profile - Court: 400th District Court - State: Texas - Role: District Associate Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-27 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Associate Judge, Texas 240th Judicial District Court, Richmond, TX, 2021-present - Associate Judge for the 400th District Court in Fort Bend County, Texas, a position she has held since 2015 - Assistant District Attorney, Fort Bend County District Attorney's Office, Richmond, TX, 2021-2021 - Associate Judge, 240th & 400th Judicial District Courts, Richmond, TX, 2015-2020 - Assistant District Attorney, Fort Bend County, Fort Bend, TX, 2000-2015 - Assistant District Attorney — Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office (2000–2015), serving in the Felony Trial, Juvenile, Domestic Violence, and Misdemeanor divisions - Private Practice — Watts & Associates (1996–1998) - Her courtroom is located at the Fort Bend County Justice Center, 1422 Eugene Heimann Circle, Richmond, TX - Stuti Trehan Patel is an Associate Judge of the 400th District Court in Fort Bend County, Texas, with over two decades of legal service in public prosecution, judicial roles, and community leadership - Her grandfather was a circuit court judge in India, and her parents ran a Montessori school in Fort Bend - She frequently presents at community events and continuing legal education trainings on topics such as pro bono opportunities and legal careers, and volunteers as a mock trial judge and law student mentor ### Education - University of Houston Law Center — J.D. (1996) ### Additional information - Legislative Committee Member, Judicial Section Appointment, State Bar of Texas, Austin, TX, 2017-2020 - Social Work, with honors — The University of Texas at Austin — 1993 - Also assigned to the 458th District Court in some cases. - Judge Patel is certified as a civil and family law mediator and a member of the Texas Bar College. - Other roles — Adjunct Professor of Law at the Blakely Advocacy Institute, University of Houston Law Center; member of the Rice University Advisory Board. - Born in Jalandhar, India, Patel moved to the U.S. at age two. - She lives in Sugar Land, Texas, with her husband and two children. ## 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 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://card.txcourts.gov/ExcelExportPublic.aspx?type=P&export=E&CommitteeID=0&Court=&SortBy=tblCounty.Sort_ID%2C%20Last_Name&Active_Flg=true&Last_Name=&First_Name=&Court_Type_CD=0&Court_Sub_Type_CD=0&County_ID=0&City_CD=0&Address_Type_CD=0&Annual_Report_CD=0&PersonnelType1=&PersonnelType2=&DistrictPrimaryLocOnly=0&AdminJudicialRegion=0&COADistrictId=0) - [Official roster](https://card.txcourts.gov/ExcelExportPublic.aspx?type=P&export=E&CommitteeID=0&Court=&SortBy=tblCounty.Sort_ID%2C%20Last_Name&Active_Flg=true&Last_Name=&First_Name=&Court_Type_CD=0&Court_Sub_Type_CD=0&County_ID=0&City_CD=0&Address_Type_CD=0&Annual_Report_CD=0&PersonnelType1=&PersonnelType2=&DistrictPrimaryLocOnly=0&AdminJudicialRegion=0&COADistrictId=0) - [Texas Office of Court Administration, active Judicial Directory official judicial roster](https://card.txcourts.gov/ExcelExportPublic.aspx?type=P&export=E&CommitteeID=0&Court=&SortBy=tblCounty.Sort_ID%2C%20Last_Name&Active_Flg=true&Last_Name=&First_Name=&Court_Type_CD=0&Court_Sub_Type_CD=0&County_ID=0&City_CD=0&Address_Type_CD=0&Annual_Report_CD=0&PersonnelType1=&PersonnelType2=&DistrictPrimaryLocOnly=0&AdminJudicialRegion=0&COADistrictId=0) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/15945/stuti-trehan-patel/) - [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) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/15945/stuti-trehan-patel/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/stuti-patel-district-400th-district-court-texas", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/stuti-patel-district-400th-district-court-texas", "name": "Stuti Patel | KnowJudges", "description": "Stuti Patel, 400th District Court. 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Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. 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. - [Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 21d, Appearances at Court Proceedings](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-a5f587f769df9f3231ef4f9a) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. 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.