Supreme Court of Texas
Jane Bland currently serves as a Justice on the Supreme Court of Texas, a position held since September 2019. Prior to this role, Jane was a Trial and Appellate Partner at Vinson & Elkins for a brief period in 2019. Jane's judicial career includes serving as a Justice on the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas from 2003 to 2018 and as a State District Judge for the 281st State District Court from 1997 to 2003. Earlier experience includes an associate position at Baker Botts between 1991 and 1997 and a Judicial Law Clerk role at the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1990 to 1991. Jane obtained a J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law and a B.B.A. in Accounting and Honors Business from Texas McCombs School of Business.
Supreme Court of Texas
Composed of the Chief Justice and eight Justices, the Supreme Court of Texas is the court of last resort for civil matters in the State of Texas. The Justices of the Supreme Court are elected to staggered six-year terms in state-wide elections. When a vacancy arises the Governor may appoint a Justice, subject to Senate confirmation, to serve out the remainder of an unexpired term until the next general election. All members of the Court must be at least 35 years of age, a citizen of Texas, licensed to practice law in Texas, and must have practiced law (or have been a lawyer and a judge of a court of record together) for at least ten years (see Tex. Const., Art. 5, Sec. 2). By statute the Court has administrative control over the State Bar of Texas. Tex. Gov't Code § 81.011. The Court is also the sole authority for licensing attorneys in Texas and appoints the members of the Board of Law Examiners which administers the Texas bar examination. Tex. Gov't Code §§ 82.00, 82.004. The Court promulgates the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, the Texas Rules of Evidence and other rules and standards.